What can I do about a 2 year infestation of coddling moths.Dormant oil hasn't worked. I won't use poison. Help
Question:People at hardware store say coddling moths very difficult to get rid of and I would need to use poison. We tried dormant and neem oil but I've lived on this acre for 20 years and never used poison. They are in every single apple. I can only make apple sauce. What frugal and environmentally healthy things can I do to stop this pestillence?
Answers:
There is a good web site put together by the Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides that documents procedures that can reduce your need for pesticides by 80%. These procedures include:
1) Plant resistant type apple trees.
2) Thin your apple crop.
3) Pick up & dispose of dropped apples.
4) Trap moths with pheromone traps, black light traps & homemade traps.
5) Put paper bags over your apples.
6) Use predatory wasps.
7) Use of the Codling Moth Virus as a biological control.
8) Use of Bt
Here is the web site: http://www.pesticide.org/codlingmoth.htm...
Do you have a copy of old man Rodale's book?
Set up a coddling moth sanctuary which you may finance from the selling of you apple sauce.
In effect turn a pestilence into an asset.
Eternal Student
Oils are very ineffective on caterpillars, and the moths.Try Bacillus Thuringiensis.This is a bacteria that may last up to 20 days on your tree. Basically if work by clogging the digestive system of the Caterpillar. They die from constipation. I would start spraying the trees before you see activity in late March, and continue @ 14 day intervals through May.You will still see activity as B.T. is not a contact kill form of control. Its to late for this crop.
http://www.bt.ucsd.edu/
http://www.pesticide.org/codlingmoth.htm...
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