Peach Tree Borer

[Richard]

@aaron4peace

I noticed you have experience dealing with Peach Tree Borer. I am trying to avoid chemical pesticides, but will break that code to save my trees if I need to. Do you have any advice for how to tackle this? I have tried nematodes, but I think its too dry here for them to thrive. I did some neem oil, spraying monthly, but haven’t yet tried the direct application via full concentration with paint brush. I’m looking for the next level of wisdom here.

Hi Aaron,
I am opposed to the use of Neem Oil as a pesticide. Its main use in commercial agriculture is as a surfactant. It has zero viability as a chemical toxin - even towards aphids. It will kill weaker insect and arachnid individuals by sticky entanglement, but studies have shown that stronger individuals survive thus breeding stronger populations.

That said, the chemical compound Azadirachtin is present in Neem seed and when distilled or biosynthesized to sufficient concentration will harm a number of insect pests. Products containing a viable concentration are all manufactured by biosynthesis because it is difficult and costly to obtain a high enough concentration by distillation.

Where are you located (region)? This can be a factor in controlling some pests.

Here’s a list of active ingredients I found in pesticides labeled for Peach Borer at CDMS that I would consider using:

Acetamiprid (systemic)
Azadirachtin (see above)
Chlorantraniliprole (ingestion or contact)
Diflubenzuron (ingestion or contact) (classified as non-carcinogenic)
Novaluron (e.g. Pedestal, Rimon® 0.83EC) ** check this out
Thiamethoxam (systemic)

updated 9:20pm

[scottfsmith]

Pure neem definitely kills peach tree borers. I have been using it for over ten years and basically saved my peaches from destruction. Only non diluted oil though, the sprays are too weak.

[Richard]

@scottfsmith

Pure neem definitely kills peach tree borers.

By sticky entanglement. Chemically, the ingredients have no viability. But why do you still have borers if you are killing them every year? Apparently there are survivors.

[scottfsmith]

When pure neem is used you have 250x the concentration compared to the usual 1 tbsp per gallon of a neem oil in water spray. So the amounts of Azadirachtin are also magnified by that amount and is about the same as adding one tbsp of pure Azadirachtin to a gallon of water. Also raw neem oil contains many other bioactive compounds besides Azadirachtin so you are getting more than just that compound.

@Richard

But why do you still have borers if you are killing them every year? Apparently there are survivors.

Every spray has survivors. If not commercial orchards would not be spraying the same poison for the same pests over and over. The main difference is now my peach trees are not dying, and the borer is overall only a minor annoyance.

I don’t think neem oil is very useful at the 1 tbsp per gallon kind of thing, in fact the reason why I tried it full strength on borers is I bought a bunch but it was not working on anything in my sprayer so I was going to throw it out…coating the peach tree trunks was just an experiment with something I was going to toss otherwise.

[thecityman]

@Richard

But why do you still have borers if you are killing them every year? Apparently there are survivors.

I would also think it is because new ones migrate to my trees from elsewhere each year. Meaning even if I had a spray that killed every single last borer (or any pest for that matter) in my orchard, I would still have more within days or weeks or the following year because bugs that weren’t on my property when I sprayed it will move in sometime after I sprayed. I would think that is another reason I have to repeatedly spray for the same pest. Even if I wipe them out with one spray, others will move in from off-site locations. Right?

[noogy]

Anybody use spinosad for borers?

[wdingus]

FYI. Here’s a conversation where both wood ash and lime/salt are discussed as defense against borers.

Save my peaches from borers, peach leaf curl, Oriental Fruit moths and who knows what else!

I have an uncle who’s had pretty good success with peach trees for 50+ years. He said an older gentleman told him when he was first starting out how he kept borers away. He keeps an inch or two of wood ash around the base of the tree, in a ring perhaps a foot or so in radius out from the tree. He did stress to me that it must be replaced/refreshed at least yearly. I figured what the heck, I have an abundance of ash, I’ve been doing the same thing on my trees since 2017 or so. Maybe it’s what’s …

[MichaelTheBeloved]

Which brand of Neem oil do you use, and have you used others need oil brands in the past but no longer use them?

What spray device do you use?

Please post pics and thank you ahead of time

[scottfsmith]

As long as the neem is pure raw neem oil it should be pretty much the same thing. I have used various brands. I am just painting it on the peach trunks without dilution, no spraying.

[fruitkismet]

I use spinosad. It seems to work well against the borers during fruit ripening phase and seems to have the added benefit of reducing earwig pressure then too.

[jbclem]

How wide a band of pure neem oil do you paint on the trunk? And do you think it (or the fumes) has any effect on borers already in a tunnel…have you tried pushing it into a borer hole?

[scottfsmith]

I paint the bottom 4” or so… making sure to get much of it right at the soil line. I don’t know if it helps much if the borers are deep into the wood already. When I find a tunnel I get to the bottom of it right away with my poker so never tried putting neem in…