Pests That Damage Growing Fruit Bearing Plants

Perhaps the most upsetting to a gardener is to see his fruit harvests infested with little holes and scabs. Or his fruit leaves crinkled and damaged. Or his fruit plant gradually drying and shedding off leaf after leaf. The culprit? The pests that so love to munch on the fruits and foliages. If you are growing fruit plants, you have to understand that plant pests aim to always get ahead of you and eat your fruits just before you harvest them. And as if that is not enough, they also injure your fruit plants, thereby affecting fruit production. This can be a frustrating truth. But if you know what pests to look out for, you can get ahead of them. There are a number of pests that damage growing fruit bearing plants, and following are some of them.

1. Aphids. Also called plant lice, aphids are small insects that suck juice from the leaves, leaving them crinkled and curled. Although they are so tiny, aphids can cause destruction to the fruit plants. How can you spot them? Normally, they appear in brown, black, and green colors. Aphids also have soft bodies.

2. Codling Moths. If you see burrows and brown rot in fruits, they are most likely caused by codling moths. These insects create tunnels down through the skin and feed on the fruit, leaving them with brown punctures.

3. Fall Webworms. It is during the later part of summer and fall that these insects appear, particularly on plant branches. Fall webworms thrive in webs and from there munch on the fruit leaves.

4. Leafhoppers. While young leafhoppers feed on the juice of fruit leaves, mature ones eat the underside of the leaves. The danger with leafhoppers is that they can spread diseases. These insects are too small, usually around 1/8 inch in length, and are in gray, tan, and green colors.

5. Plum Gougers. Fruits infested by plum gougers usually have half-round burrows the size of a matchstick. These burrows are caused by larvae that stay in the fruit until they grow into adults. Plum gougers are also classified as snout beetles.

6. Spider Mites. These insects like to attack fruit leaves. They create webs on the underside of the leaves and feed on leaf juice. They cause the leaves to dry up and fall.

What to do
It would help if you choose to grow fruit plants that naturally repel pests and insects. But if the fruit of your choice does not have this quality, you can use pesticides and insecticides to protect your fruits and foliage from these pesky creatures. There are several brands in the market, but to be able to make an intelligent choice, you can contact your local nurseryman for suggestions.

Careful spraying and application of such solutions should be observed, since they may contain chemicals that may be risky to health. To protect yourself, you need to wear proper working clothes and gloves. Spray only as necessary and as indicated on the product label. Also, do not spray during the blooming period because doing so may kill the insects that help in pollination.

There is also a more natural way to eliminate these pests that damage growing fruit bearing plants. For instance, you can prune out the affected branches or hose down the webs. Or you can grow plants that are naturally insect- and pest-repellent and situate them near your fruit plants.