Q. Can I spray Sevin now on my apples and peaches? There already seems to be a problem with the peaches, so I need to spray something fairly strong. Also, a friend told me apricots would grow here, so I planted one, but it is turning yellow. Do you think this is a disease?
Sevin can cause problems on apples when sprayed soon after bloom. But Sevin doesn't cause fruit drop on peaches and is a problem on apples for only about 14 days from the time the blooms drop off.
So to answer your question, it would be fine to spray Sevin now.
Sevin, however, is not as strong as malathion on the insects that affect apples and peaches. Next year you should get a spray on the fruit before the 14 days are up.
The insects that have attacked your peaches are probably plum curculios. Curculios are weevils in the same order as beetles.
Many of these peaches will fall off, but the curculios will be able to complete their life cycle. Then there will be so many second-generation curculios around that you will have worms in the mature fruit no matter what you do between now and harvest, although I would continue to follow the spray guide.
The first few sprays after petal fall are critical to reducing plum curculios. If you have apples and peaches, go ahead and use malathion for the spray at petal fall.
Generally apples are still in bloom at peach petal fall, so spray only the peaches then. By the time for the second spray, the apple blooms are dropping and you can spray both.
The complete Home Orchard Spray guide is available online: www.ces.ncsu.edu/depts/pp/notes/Fruit/fdin002/fdin002.htm
Just because the apricot plant will grow here doesn't mean you will get apricot production here. Apricots bloom so early that the blooms typically freeze nine out of 10 years.
The most likely cause of yellow leaves on apricots is not a disease but rather the results of infestation by greater peach tree borers last year. This year, be sure to follow the spray guide on greater peach tree borers.
