Combatting brown rot

Thank you to you and Barry for posting the link.

I believe Mrs. G. Is buying them, too. We will report back.

I bagged peaches in the past but used breathable bags because I thought a solid bag would promote rot. But, these Clemson folks may have a good idea to use a solid bag to keep the diseases from getting in to begin with. I might get a few to experiment.

@mamuang, I don’t think you need to do an insecticide spray before bagging. But some sort of disease preventative should be put on, sulphur or Serenade if nothing else.

Scott,

Clemson included a how-to sheet in the package. It says to spray fungicide and insecticide at petal fall (or within 14 days) and a day before bagging. I guess they want to make sure the peachlets are not damaged before bagging.

From the bags I received and the video, we need to let the peachlets size up a bit. In my area, OFM and stinkbugs would get to them before then. I have sulfur but will buy Serenade as I think I need to put both on the peachlets before bagging.

Thanks, Scott for your advice.

Maybe the thing for us to do is bag right away, not following the instructions exactly. If the tree is heavily thinned at that point the fruits bagged are not likely to be ones that will drop.

I’m not sure Serenade and sulphur are good to put on together, Serenade is microbial in action and may be adversely affected by the sulphur. I always staggered the two - I use Serenade plus oil, or sulphur.

These bags are a bit tricky to use. Not sure how well I could gather the top together and wrap it with a tie if peachlets are still tiny.

Thank you pointing out about Serenade vs sulfur.

When you said “Serenade plus oil,” do you mean summer oil or sticker like Nufilm?

I mean summer oil; I usually use Tritek mineral oil with Serenade as it also has smothering effects on diseases. Nufilm is not an oil, its pine tar.

Note I don’t use a lot of nufilm between petal fall and late June as I have Surround down in that whole period. Oil on the other hand mixes fine with Surround.

I’ve never used oil, dormant or summer. Need to look into it as I try to work my way toward chemical-less approach.

Always appreciate your advice and tutoring. I’m a slow learner :blush:

Oil is becoming increasingly important to me because I’m using a pyrethroid at many sites and the stuff is a nightmare for its elimination of beneficials. I’m seeing peach scale at many sites for the first time- all where Asana was used.

In recent years we’ve put down oil too late for peaches when apples are in tight cluster, so I’m hoping if we do an earlier oil spray at 2% and get the peaches this problem will recede. It is killing the peach trees where the scale is most rampant.

Just a heads up for those of you using Triazicide. Look out for the cottony scale on your peach trees, especially in the northeast.

I believe late dormant oil application is the most important measure in growing fruit trees. I have seen commercial guidelines on peaches that suggest spraying oil two times each year. It can reduce a lot of potential problems and its pretty safe. Some folks also apply a lighter weight “summer oil” with success later in the season

Excellent sanitation can reduce the amount of brown rot fungus in the orchard and can help reduce the amount of brown rot on the fruit. The BYO has a big advantage in this area because on a small scale its possible closely look for cankers and remove them and then rake the area clean including all pits and collect and dispose of all thinned fruit.

Here is some useful information and pictures:
http://www.caf.wvu.edu/kearneysville/disease_descriptions/ombrownr.html

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I know this is an old thread but I think it’s still relevant. Baring late freezes I am expecting my first small crop of stone fruit this summer and according to one of my neighbors his biggest problem with his fruit trees is brown rot. I’ve not seen his orchard so I don’t know how much of that is his fault from a sanitation standpoint or if it’s just something common to my area. In an effort to be prepared for brown rot problems I anticipated buying Monterey Fungi Fighter. It unfortunately is no longer sold at my local AG store where I purchase most of my ferts and spray products. I’m not locked into MFF but I’ve heard it is very effective. I’ve read about Indar but that is way out of my price range. I wish they would sell pint sized bottles of these products for I know they fear homeowners won’t follow instructions. Even searching the internet I’m having trouble finding an online source for MFF that seems trustworthy. Anyone have a reliable source?

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Well I ordered stuff a few years ago, and it was fine.

You can also use Bonide Fruit Tree and Plant Guard. It has a different fungicide, that attacks brown rot in a different manner. The fungicides in it are tops for their mode of action against brown rot. It is used a lot in commercial settings for brown rot. I use both. I have had little to no brown rot here using both.

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Captan is easy to come by and it is effective against brown rot for up to 2 weeks or until it washes off. Monterey Fungus Fighter doesn’t wash off and has more power to sterilize the BR in the trees, I think. Captan only functions as a protectant so must be on fruit when rain or even dew comes. MFF has some post emergence efficacy and can even rescue fruit after the rot begins. Now that spring approaches MFF will probably be easier to find.

https://www.amazon.com/Propiconazole-Generic-Banner-Quart-nuf-010/dp/B004GTONG8/ref=pd_lpo_86_tr_img_3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=ZXY7VTNWRZB2VHR2TDJ9

The source and formulation may be a fraction of the price of MFF. See if the name indicates the % of active ingredient as it appears to be. This would be a much, much better price for active ingredient than MFF.

Or perhaps this. https://www.amazon.com/Propiconazole-Honor-Guard-Spectrum-Fungicide/dp/B015X6FIYS/ref=pd_sim_86_3?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B015X6FIYS&pd_rd_r=41WSF9ECM5XFD3XB4M55&pd_rd_w=edP0w&pd_rd_wg=b1PR2&psc=1&refRID=41WSF9ECM5XFD3XB4M55

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Alan, I don’t think that formulation is labeled for edible crops. The problem in that case is there could be various poisons in the non-active ingredients and they are not listed on the label so its impossible to tell for sure.

You are more than correct. It is illegal to use fruit sprayed for eating or selling as such. How sucky is that?

Given that there are no other sources for it for edibles this appears to be a superior source as I’ve used them for other things- Drew already posted it.

Thanks for the link to that site Bill. That looks like a good place to get it. I also noticed a similar product there from Bonide called INFUSE. IT has the same percentage of the active ingredient in MFF. My local AG shop sells a lot of Bonide products so I’ll check there first and if not I’ll order the MFF from the site you recommended.

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Awesome, I didn’t know that! I save the links to the product label as I find it easier to look at it on my computer screen. Often the directions get wet, fall off etc.

You can get Infuse on Amazon for 17.31 and free postage with a 49 dollar order. I just keep things in my shopping cart till I meet the free shipping quota. I buy too much from there as is!

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Nice. Hadn’t thought to look for it on Amazon. I have prime so it should ship free for me.

I searched for MFF on Amazon and some jerk is selling it for $39.99. that’s twice the cost of the link you posted.

Wow, yeah you have to research everything before you buy!
I have to check, I think I need some for next year. I also want more watering mats for my seeds and seedlings. I need a cherry pitter too, and some chili powder, go figure all from a book store! My total is 50.39 yeah free shipping!

Hi Speedster. I have over 70 percent stone fruit in my orchard. MFF is my go to product as well. I agree with Drew. I also use it with a sticker. Last summer which was particularly humid, brought on more black knot than usual. So Monterey was fantastic at making it disappear! Until next season.

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I don’t believe it works at all well on BK. The only recommended fungicides for it I know of are old school products, the most effective of which is said to be chlorothalinil, and even it is not very effective. However BKs activity is based on rain and temps and there was a lot of drought going on last summer.

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