It is time to spray against brown rot that destroys peaches, nectarines and sometimes apricots and plums, just as they ripen.
It is time to spray against brown rot that destroys peaches, nectarines and sometimes apricots and plums, just as they ripen.
As we sit amongst rising prices and what has been catchphrased a “cost-of-living crisis”, there is no better time to be growing your own produce.
The investment in planting a fruit tree returns itself many times over as the life span of a fruit tree can be 20-40 years inthe case of avocados, apricots, apples, citrus, cherries, figs, nectarines, peaches, pears, plums and others. There are nut trees too - almonds, chestnuts, hazelnuts and walnuts.
All these fruit and nuts will offer so much nutritional value and can be grown at your place.
Late winter is a good time to be planting these and other fruit trees. The ground is wet from winter rain and we have warm weather ahead which will promote growth. Planting new trees at your place now will ensure the new growth happens in the ground where they are to grow for the coming years. This will give some reasonable establishment before the dry of the summer months.
By selecting a number of different fruit trees and plants with some careful thought, you can pick your own produce from your garden and feed yourself every month of the year.
Other fruits which grow well in Whanganui gardens include apples, pears, peaches, olives, plums, quinces, gooseberries, cranberries, guavas, kiwifruit, grapes, walnuts, hazelnuts and persimmons. Don’t forget - many varieties of citrus fruit.
First plum varieties - Duffs Early Jewel (Christmas), Santa Rosa, Scarlet Sunrise, Plumcot Spring Satin, avocado Hass, loganberries, blueberries, lemon Meyer, lemon Yenben/Lisbon, lemonade, limes, grapefruit, oranges, apricot Royal Rosa, apricot Sundrop, dwarf apricot Golden Glow, currants, gooseberries, raspberries, strawberries, cherry Compact Stella, nectarine Snowqueen.
Stonefruit pest watch – time to spray for curly leaf protection
Flower and leaf buds on peaches and nectarines are certainly starting to swell. Now is the time to apply Freeflo copper and Enspray 99 oil to prevent curly leaf and get rid of any residual insect problems. These two products can be mixed together.
These certified organic oil and copper sprays can be used on all fruit trees as a winter clean-up which will help to remove overwintering insect larvae and kill fungus spores. This will reduce pest and disease incidence in the coming summer. We recommend doing this spray combination twice, two weeks apart.
It is also time to spray for protection against brown rot that destroys peaches, nectarines and sometimes apricots and plums, just as they ripen. Many come looking for a remedy each year when their fruit is rotting – the only fix for this is preventative spraying soon. Make sure you have on hand Yates Fungus Fighter or a newer biological spray Botryzen. Botryzen is a natural fungus which colonises the fruiting area, preventing pathogenic rotting fungi or bacteria from establishing.
Either of these should be sprayed on peaches and nectarines once at the commencement of flowering, once in full bloom, once at petal fall and once at shuck fall.
