Borers

I am new to dealing with fruit trees. The house I bought has several. I noticed that the nectarine tree in the back has some sort of gall looking mess at the base. I poked a wire in the area and found oozing. This is a small but a good producing tree. Do you think I have a borer? I surely don't want to put pesticides on a fruit tree (I don't have any pesticides around but dipel, and safer soap like stuff). Can Anyone tell me what I can do? I would love to save this tree.

If it's a foot or less from the base it could very easily be a peachtree borer. You did good, poking in there with a wire. I'd ram that in there and try to kill anything in that hole. If you don't see any sawdust-looking stuff come out of there in the next week then you probably killed it. The larvae will be in the ground around the base of the tree, so you should lightly cultivate that area and try to bring them to the surface, so birds and such can eat 'em! If they are still in their cocoons then pick them up and get rid of them. (They look brownish in color.)

Looks like we have our first resident expert!

HALT! Do NOT pass GO! (But if you do, please let me collect the monopoly money!)

I was first introduced to peach tree borers when I bought one of my first peach trees, Dennis. The borer CAME with the tree! Fortunately for me, I hadn't even planted it yet. When I found out what it was and, most importantly, found out the borers in our area weren't out-and-about yet, I took it back where I purchased it and had knowledgeable ammo to use. (They called the company and they sent me another tree a few days later! Yay!!)

So much for your "expert", eh? (I'm just happily doodling along in life on this planet, checking things out, thass all!)

Hey Horseshoe I learned something! I have two peach trees and both were bought in the last month. We have such a terrible problem with peach leaf curl here that other diseases barely even count.

Ugh! I reckon ya'll are in a cool damp area, eh?
Aren't there resistant cultivars available up there? Would be interesting to do a search for some names of those.

I've never used it before but understand that bordeaux mix would help.

Horseshoe,

Thanks for the info. I have noticed there is not any activity in the area. Fruit still on the tree. Now dealing with the gopher or gophers, will be my next hurtle. I planted a pear tree and I guess I should have surrounded it with mesh. I filled in the gopher hole I found underneath the tree and now I go out each day to check for that furry little fellow. Should I dig up the pear tree and put mesh around it, or will I really shock it too much? It is a 3 foot tall dwarf tree.

Ok, so I have the awful snap trap (excuse me friends of the gopher) I put peanut butter in it? This goper has tunneled everywhere this winter and I can't keep up with it. My neighbor does not go in his back yard or pick up the rotten fruit (much less pick any) and now that he has eaten all the oranges, the gopher has decided to see what treasures are in my yard. Are gophers territorial? I hope so, cuz I'd better not have more than one!

By the By, this pear is in the same area as my nectarine with no sign of borers any more. I dug the whole area and fed all the grubs etc to the scrub jays and lizards. Wish they would eat gophers. I think this is a pocket gopher.

Any suggestions?

Them pesky varmints! I dis-like 'em so much I wouldn't even eat one! (And that's saying something!)

If it were me I wouldn't dig up the tree. I'm too lazy for that. But also because gophers don't really eat the roots, they'll tend to go for the bark of the tree (and sometimes girdle it) and the fruit/vegetation. Also, them little boogers can climb UP as well as dig UNDER so a barrier fence may not help much. If you filled in the hole and it hasn't been re-dug maybe the critter has set up his house somewhere other than under the tree. Still, it'll be around to partake of your goodies so I'd either trap it or shoot it. I know shooting sounds harsh but it is much more humane than a death by some type of slow poisoning. The snap trap is quick as well, and Hav-a-hart makes a live trap that works pretty good. And yes, peanut butter is good and so is apples. (As for me, I love peanut butter ON apples, so why not use both?)

By the way, act fast. Spring is in the air, and a gopher usually begats five babies to a litter.

5 BABIES!!!!!!!

Oh My!! Ok, my neighbors wouldn't like the shooting. I am half rural, half not. So it is the spring trap. I would say that relocating would not be for me cuz I can't trapse up the mountain. (getting pins out of my ankle in a month) So it's good riddens. I keep finding places where he wants to make a home and filling them in and putting water in it. He sure was busy the night after I wrote the post. (he must have been listening!) What he has been doing is making the holes deeper. Sneeky varmit. How deep can they go? Ok, peanut butter on apples. That sounds yummy and I am sure the gopher will really like that as well as I do. I feel like I have Bill Murray's gopher in my yard!

Hehehe...Jul, you should "affectionately" name that gopher Bill, or William, or even Murray!

Can't say how deep they can go but do know the normal depth for a gopher tunnel is often-times 2 ft. And what they do is dig side tunnels off the main tunnel, then they use that as a place to deposit the dirt from the main tunnel so they don't have to move it clear to the very beginning of the main tunnel. You can see these side tunnels cuz there'll be a small mound near them but they'll be plugged up from the inside.

Go for the gusto. And if you need a recipe for gopher/groundhog, Roadrunner Jo can get you started on that.

Horseshoe,

Now I suppose you will tell me it tastes like chicken. NOT!

I just read that they can only dig to 16 inches. I think 2 feet is a little deeper and I would say that it may be possible. I have noticed that Murray (lets just hope it is a murray and not a murrayette) has been less active since I daily destroy the tunnels. I also just read yesterday that you find the hole that has been filled and unfill it then you place a trap on one side and one on the other and you put the yummies inbetween. You have to put a wire from each trap and hook it to a stake. I guess to make sure that it does not run off with your trap???? LOL Oh so interesting.

It is raining like cats and dogs today, so I will wait until Murray shows up again and sneak up on him unexpectidly. I also learned that they come out of their holes and can climb trees to get ot the fruit. Is that true???? You said climb and the book said up to the fruit. I am thinking that Murray thinks he has run into Gopher heaven. Yea, I think he may be correct on that assumption! LOL So, Thanks for the wonderful insight. Jul

That Murray!....I declare.

Yes, they can climb trees. My dogs were barking and barking one day at something. When I tracked 'em down there was a "murray" in a tree just out of their reach! I ran home and got DW and DD and we went back. 'Twas a great site for them to see.