I have some young pears that have not fruited. I was out tying the branches down to the espalier wire when…
I saw many yellowjacks landing and going to the base of leaves where the stipules and petioles come together and it looked like they were looking for something and putting their mouth areas into the crack at the base . They then went underneath the leaves again seemingly looking for something.
Has anyone heard of this behavior?
Mike
When yellow jackets are in pears in our region it usually means you have pear psyla. Psyla, like aphids suck sap to harvest protein- the carbos run through them as they “mine” for protein and attract mold and yellow jackets. Did the growing shoots dry up a bit and lose vigor? That’s another sign. These are the worst of pear pests and prevent trees from being healthy and fruitful when they are left untreated. For home growers Surround may be as good as anything to discourage them. Even non-organic commercial growers in the state often use it for psyla.
What is effective for those who don’t insist on organic? Getting Surround to properly cover a full sized pear tree would be a challenge.
Asana works until they become resistant so I assume triazicide does as well.