Every year. If we could delay some of this rain for the near-annual late summer drought, it would be great.
Two unknown local heirlooms. One of them was from a house built in the late 1800s, planted with a yellow transparent or yellow june and a crabable as companions. The original tree was cut down by the current owner a couple of years ago for no good reason, and I just lost one of my two trees to ambrosia beetle. It is my favorite tasting apple I’ve ever had. The other is from another group of three very old trees found locally. The local historical society is uninterested in helping me figure out the varieties.
I did not spray any copper, strep or Apogee on any of my apples this year. I had a lot of warm, wet weather during bloom, so it’s going to be interesting to see how much FB I get with no chemical management.
I believe my pruning and chemicals have significantly reduced the fireblight, but of course there’s no way to know for sure. I have started cutting back at the very first sign
all the way into second year wood, which seems better.
I wouldn’t be surprised if you are right. I do a thorough search every year, but I have found cankers late in the year that are obviously left over, which I missed. Often these are small and on older wood.
It’s eating up my pears… I think LeConte is doomed. Orient is hit badly and I’ve cut limbs with good sized fruitlets and I think it’s trying to bloom again. Moonglow isn’t too bad—just finished blooming. Ayers has none but it didn’t bloom this year and Kieffer has none but it bloomed very early and lost fruit to a freeze. Harrow Sweet has none and it’s right beside the LeConte. I’ve seen none on any apples yet. They are blooming now. It rains every day in 70-85 degree weather.
As of now only my King David apple is still the only one to have FB strikes and they have settled down to none since the earlier reported problems. We have had rains but also longer dry periods and this might explain why I have had less FB this year. I haven’t sprayed any of the apples but I did one spraying of my pears with oil/copper. Each year seems to be different for unknown reasons. About all I do is check daily for strikes and immediately break out any FB or anything that remotely looks like it. Looking back at post some strikes have been reported around this date so I’m still trying to be vigilant with checking my trees.
Just my opinion but I’m pretty sure infections are much higher during long periods of wet weather. Has your FB settled down or are you still having problems with it?
I think those conditions were perfect for the fire blight. I think my LeConte is done for… it’s been cut back to very little. What leaves and new growth are on it look pretty good but the main trunk is kinda dark looking (not really “fireblight” dark) and there are some small cracks in the bark in places. The others look okay. My Orient definitely lets light in now to all areas as I have had to cut it pretty severely. Moonglow looks fairly well. Ayers wasn’t hit at all (never bloomed this year). And my tiny Harrow Sweet had to have one limb amputated but so far looks okay. The hit on the Harrow Sweet has been the last that I’ve seen and that was last week. I don’t know what to do with the Le Conte…pull the whole tree out or just watch it. It stands next to the HS. I have not seen one thing on the apples and they are nearby. Less rain now but still temps in low to mid eighties.
LeConte is in pretty bad shape? I need advice. Lots of the wood is damaged even down on the main trunk. There is a lot of new growth on what is left. There is a two foot rootstock sucker at the base of the tree. Cut the tree down and leave the sucker for grafting next year? Leave it and see what happens?
I think I would cut it down and graft the suckers with my most FB resistant scion. If you have scions saved you could graft it now. I have started grafting different varieties onto the limbs of my FB resistant trees. If a limb succumbs to FB you might be able to save the tree minus the one limb. I’m assuming that the suckers are below the graft.
About three years ago I had a similar looking tree and I thought it might be sun scald. I cut it down and grafted a sucker with Harrow Sweet. It came back well and has a few fruit on it now.
Strange what a couple hundred miles makes. I have no fb yet in Dallas, though 2 years ago every apple and pear tree of mine had it. I guess I understand now why Texas A&M doesn’t recommend LeConte for East Texas
I didn’t have any last year but I did a very STUPID thing this year. I put fertilize out in the orchard. I purposely did not fertilize the pears last year but just wasn’t thinking this year and hit them with it too…
The sucker that is there comes off the rootstock at ground level. I’ve cut into the bark in several places trying to find green cambium. Down on the trunk I had to cut half around the trunk to find green. You can see the new growth it has that looks good but it’s certainly damaged and I don’t have experience to know if it could overcome that. AND I cut off a lot more fireblight today.
I always give my pears a little fertilizer, less than other fruit trees though; & only once. I think you’re just unlucky, the fb gods decided to get you!
I don’t know if fertilizer increases FB but my pears are on vigorous Callery roots and and I have just assumed they didn’t need me to add anything. I watered a little the first year but mostly added no more supplements.
That tree looks like toast to me. If its on callery rootstock, that might be the most resistant variety you will have. With that in mind could you cut it all off except for the very lowest rootstock sucker then grow it out this summer focusing on getting a few branches going that you could then graft the scion of your choice to next spring. That way if you get an infection in the future you only lose a branch and not the main trunk/tree. There is a thread on this approach started by @clarkinks but I can’t seem to find it.
The tree is likely toast I think. If I cut it off, I don’t think it has the energy to push new growth. If I leave it the fireblight will kill it.
Too bad, and I hate to ask for a refund but the branch that the FB looks to have originated from never leafed out. So I am suspecting it was infected in the field last year at the nursery.
