Got "The Fruit Expert" by Dr. DG Hessayon to help me look after the
recently planted apples, raspberries, gooseberries and blueberries.

Am ALARMED at the number of pests and diseases I shall be facing! It
seems the birds will eat everything, although the apples might escape.

But he prescribes spraying the apples at SIX specific times during the
year.

Is it really that grim or is the good Doctor something of a pessimist?

(He does a vegetable book as well but I don't think I dare even look at
it in the shop!)

Steve Harris - Cheltenham - Real address steve AT netservs DOT com

In article , Steve
Harris writes
Got "The Fruit Expert" by Dr. DG Hessayon to help me look after the
recently planted apples, raspberries, gooseberries and blueberries.

Am ALARMED at the number of pests and diseases I shall be facing! It
seems the birds will eat everything, although the apples might escape.

The birds will eat any apples that fall, or that you leave on the tree
too late. But you won't find them a problem.

On the plus side, the birds will et an awful lot of greenfly and other
pests.

Gooseberries get gooseberry sawfly, which strips all the leaves. Doesn't
seem to worry the plants overmuch though.

But he prescribes spraying the apples at SIX specific times during the
year.

Is it really that grim or is the good Doctor something of a pessimist?

I don't spray mine at all. OK, they're not the healthiest trees in the
world, but the apples are OK and the crops are good. And it's the heck
of a lot less bother!

It's very difficult to spray against harmful organisms and avoid killing
some goodies as well, My experience has been that, after several years
of not spraying, the pests are becoming less and less troublesome.
--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/garden/

The message
from (Steve Harris) contains these words:


Is it really that grim

No. Try a websearch on Organic methods.

or is the good Doctor something of a pessimist?

More of an advertiser for garden chemicals producers, aimed at making
beginner gardeners think they must buy and apply chemicals constantly.
All that series portray gardening as an endless armed battle against the
destructive forces of nature, which is the opposite of reality.

Janet.

Steve Harris wrote in message ...
Got "The Fruit Expert" by Dr. DG Hessayon to help me look after the
recently planted apples, raspberries, gooseberries and blueberries.

Am ALARMED at the number of pests and diseases I shall be facing! It
seems the birds will eat everything, although the apples might escape.

But he prescribes spraying the apples at SIX specific times during the
year.

Is it really that grim or is the good Doctor something of a pessimist?


No, it isn't generally that grim and you don't generally need
to spray 6 times per year. In many cases you can get away
without spraying at all.

However, fruit is a highly attractive thing to eat for wildlife
as well as us, and some fruits have been highly bred for
taste, leaving them more vulnerable to diseases than their
wild counterparts. They're also a permanent crop, so
you can't easily reduce the pest count by replanting the
next year in a different place as you do with veggies.

I'd suggest that you try without spraying initially, and you
patiently assess any problems you get- use Hessayon's
book as a guide if you get problems. Be aware that
apples etc seem to me to be more vulnerable to problems
in their first couple of years.

It may well be that your experience will depend on the
varieties you've chosen. In my garden Cox & possibly
Greensleeves have not been able to yield a crop, so
they are coming out as I don't want to bother spraying,
and the same applies to my Comice pear.

have fun

--
Anton

Kay Easton wrote:
: Steve Harris writes
:Am ALARMED at the number of pests and diseases I shall be facing! It
:seems the birds will eat everything, although the apples might escape.
.........
: Gooseberries get gooseberry sawfly, which strips all the leaves. Doesn't
: seem to worry the plants overmuch though.

Depends. There can often be a couple of generations of sawfly - if your
goosegog is stripped bare early on, it can affect them. I've had goosegogs
stripped, and had a rest on the following year from fruiting.

:But he prescribes spraying the apples at SIX specific times during the
:year.
:
:Is it really that grim or is the good Doctor something of a pessimist?

: I don't spray mine at all. OK, they're not the healthiest trees in the
: world, but the apples are OK and the crops are good. And it's the heck
: of a lot less bother!

Heartily agree with Kay. You do have to be vigilant thought. Checking for
sawfly, and other infestations very regularly and manually removing. Also
for apples and pears I find you have to be eternally vigilant for canker
and similar and cut out infected branches promptly. But then there's
nothing like having a good idle potter round the garden, secateurs in
hand - not exactly arduous, and very relaxing!

: It's very difficult to spray against harmful organisms and avoid killing
: some goodies as well, My experience has been that, after several years
: of not spraying, the pests are becoming less and less troublesome.

I've read that older gooseberry bushes are less susceptable to sawfly than
newer bushes!

Jim