"The Invalid" wrote

Picked some apples from our tree yesterday and most of them had
maggots in. All seemed to have got in from the base of the apple in
the middle.

Will I need to put a tar band round the tree or are the eggs injected
in by flying bugs ?

Sounds like Codling Moth (small white "maggots" with brown heads?). Apple
Sawfly are similar but they attack the young fruit which fall early.
As for control, do a search, I'm sure the RHS site has info.

--
Regards
Bob H
17mls W. of London.UK

"Bob Hobden" wrote in message
...

"The Invalid" wrote

Picked some apples from our tree yesterday and most of them had
maggots in. All seemed to have got in from the base of the apple in
the middle.

Will I need to put a tar band round the tree or are the eggs injected
in by flying bugs ?

Sounds like Codling Moth (small white "maggots" with brown heads?). Apple
Sawfly are similar but they attack the young fruit which fall early.
As for control, do a search, I'm sure the RHS site has info.

But, if they are ripe, you can still eat the apples, all you have to do is
to cut out the bits that have been used by the maggots!

Alan


--
Regards
Bob H
17mls W. of London.UK

But, if they are ripe, you can still eat the apples, all you have to do is
to cut out the bits that have been used by the maggots!

Alan


Reminds me of an old schoolboy joke...

Q) What's worse than biting an apple and finding a maggot in it?
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..
..
..
..
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A) Biting an apple and finding half a maggot!

--
David
.... Email address on website http://www.avisoft.co.uk
.... Blog at http://dlts-french-adventures.blogspot.com/

I would agree with Bob regarding Codling moth being the problem.
Sawfly affects the young fruitlets and causes a scar on the fruit - a
russetted line across it whereas the codling moth lays its egg in the
blossom end of the fruitlet, the maturing maggot eating out some of the
middle and emerging out the side of the fruit.
A useful means of control is a double header approach of in the autumn
using grease bands to stop the females climbing the tree - re-frersh in
the spring. The second approach is to use pheromone traps, available
from the garden centers or direct from Agralan -
http://www.agralan.co.uk/acatalog/On...ONTROL_11.html
If you have neighbouring gardening that are infected - you are on the
back foot - could try and encourage them to do the same. Commercially
they put one trap every 5m, if the get over 25 codling moths in the
trap, they would spray.
Good hygiene is important - pick up and dispose of windfalls. If you
want them for the birds move them well away. If you have an ornamental
crab such as Golden Hornet, which seems to hold onto its fruit forever
- birds don't go mad for them, be sure to clear them too, just incase
they are providing a breeding pool
Clifford
Bawtry, Doncaster, South Yorkshire