Protecting Peaches From Bugs Without Spraying

This year my wife and I have been trying out a few different methods for protecting our peach crop from bugs without using sprays. Primarily we deal with moths, plum curculio, and japanese beetles on our fruit, but we have seen other bugs. We mix together molasses, apple cider vinegar and water in old milk jugs to attract and drown the bugs. We have been catching a lot more than I thought we would too! Unfortunately we didn't get our traps out early enough to stop some of the damage, but it definitely seems to have helped as many of our peaches don't seem to have any damage yet at all. Our nicest looking peaches are then getting wrapped in disposable socks to protect them from any blemish and (hopefully) hold them to the tree once they are ripe and ready to fall! Between these methods, and utilizing our cleaning crew (our small flock of chickens) it is our hope that we will have a good crop! We'd love to hear of any passive solutions like this you have tried on your trees as well, so please share in the comments!
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[@danielsmith336]

How did the nylon socks work for you? Curculio just attacked the fruit between the weave of the fabric for me. As the fruit expanded the sock material stretched giving them little square holes that they just pierce the fruit through. I had to watch it one morning to figure out how they were cutting the crescent shape without getting inside the material or cutting through the material. That square hole in the weave of the fabric where the curculio started cutting just moved with the curculio as she cut her crescent shape, then she turned around and deposited an egg right through it.

[@HonestHomesteading]

The socks weren't as helpful as I had hoped. They were primarily useful in preventing bruising because I tied many of them around the branches so that the fruit held onto the tree when it would have dropped. The few that didn't hang onto the branch weren't eaten by my chickens because of the socks, so that was also a plus. I think a few curculio got through the socks like you noticed, but it did keep japanese beetles out. I will probably test a few trees without socks next year to see if I notice a difference.

[@agnesfetters]

@@HonestHomesteading what did you end up doing? I have the same problem and don't know what to do yet.

[@gardeningjunkie2267]

@@HonestHomesteading I think you put it on too late, I got curculio when they were tiny little fruit, probably half the size you're showing

[@doityourselflivinggardenin7986]

Hang your bug catchers on non-fruit trees. Otherwise, you are attracting bugs toward your fruit trees. You could hang them on posts as well.

[@zino6661]

I use molasses mixed with water only on my peaches (no vinegar), combined with "Dipel Pro DF" spary, just to guarantee that every moth that approaches my trees get the nice treatment it deserve. It's working so far

[@edie5285]

What is the ratio of water and molasses do you use?

[@zino6661]

@@edie5285 I don't follow exact measurement. as long still smell the aroma. I also get it from Tractor Suuply ($10.99)

[@jizanAli296]

احسنتم ربنا يحفظكم ويسعدكم ويهديكم ربنا وتقبل دعا

[@pamscarr8696]

I had J Beetles issues with my Muscadines before I ever had peach trees. I put Molasses straight into a regular size canning jar. I did it for about 3 years and they disappeared for about 3 years. I just saw one on my plum tree yesterday, so I am going back at it today.

[@mikealdag7309]

Can you explain this please , very interested , I'm having beetle issues now

[@TheCompleteGuitarist]

I have a peach at the bottom of my garden, planted from seed. It produces somewhere in the region of about 300 peaches literally dripping and we don't get a single peach from it that isn't infected or hasn't been eaten by the opossums :( I have taken to cutting out the infected parts and cooking with the remainder but it is galling to see such a productive tree provide next to nothing.

[@TriggaTreDay]

That’s terrible. We have 4 very large peach trees in my neighborhood that no one seems to eat from. My husband and I discovered it last month. It’s tons and tons of fruit on these trees and it seems that nearly all of the fruit has been attacked by bugs or squirrels. It’s quite sickening to say the least.

[@TriggaTreDay]

How long did it take for your tree to go from seed to producing fruit?

[@Anubalfer]

I used wedding lace baggies and covered each fruit, but the squirrels ripped through them. I hate them so much. Also the japanese beetle traps work extremely well. You should set one or two up in May to get ready for them. Keeping the old lure in the bag helps attract more and weigh the bag before it gets filled.

[@3FeathersFarmstead]

Those Japanese Beetles are terrible here again this year. Will have to try that trap The barn swallows have been helping out a little bit. Those stockings are good for lots of things in the orchard!

[@HonestHomesteading]

I've only been seeing them for about a week, so I'm not sure yet how bad they are going to be. I saw very few last year, but the year before was rough. Since filming I have seen a few in my traps though! So even if it is just luck, at least caught a few!

[@shellybarron-t4f]

We have used neem oil for the first thaw,,, have had them real bad, and you want to spray the ground around the plant ,

[@thedoubleboiler6971]

I never would have thought of the trap. That will help me big time (next to a creek).

[@vientran8109]

I did this 2 days ago and i checked this morning i caught a few bad guys in the jugs👍👍👍👍👍Thanks again

[@kathycallahan6810]

U can also put a sticky band around the trunk that sticky stuff on the peach is wevals

[@friendsforever5012]

Use copper fungicide every 2 weeks, or spray a mixture of dish soap and vinegar

[@CVenza]

Dish soap & vinegar on the fruit or trunk?

[@lashanbond4143]

What would the measurements of the soap and vinegar?

[@Aelfswythe]

Japanese beetles decimated the peaches on both my trees. 😭 Just ate them down to the pit. Thanks for this great info to help fight them without spraying!

[@HonestHomesteading]

Oh no! I hope some of these tips help! I've found "trap crops" to be helpful too. Maybe get some rosebushes or something else short that they are attracted to so you can knock the beetles into soapy water and lessen their impact. Chickens help eat their population down too!

[@KaiKiko__Foxkit]

The Japanese beetles are coming from the ground where they live as grubs first.

[@mjfadeaway8121]

awesome video. definitely putting all the advice to work tomorrow... our tree might be lost for the year bc we have quite a lot of jellies but I know how to operate moving forward. thanks again for being informative and quick!

[@tiger38able]

I used green organza bags - still getting in - also taped around the trunk for ants

[@alexw890]

Are you familiar with Michael Phillips? He came up with a holistic spray: liquid fish, kelp, effective microbes, neem and karanja oil. For curculio he recommends kaolin clay spray.

[@osofu77]

Thank you sir for this advice I am going to try the gallon trap!

[@teter129]

What part of the county are you from? Also, where did you get the socks? My 5 peach trees are finally setting fruit for the first time in the 3 years I’ve own them.

[@HonestHomesteading]

We are in central Indiana. I believe I purchased the socks on Amazon, though I think the traps did a lot more good than the socks.

[@bowtiedone2784]

I think spraying would be easier than coming up with 500 socks for 1 tree

[@HonestHomesteading]

Agreed! I don't think the socks made enough difference to be worth it, though the bug traps definitely helped!

[@beetickler6418]

Socks or netting around each peach did not work for me. Bugs still got to the fruit and squirrels ruined them by chewing through it.

[@hughhartsell9936]

I'll have to say that it looks like he is showing methods of insect control that don't work.

[@serenababy6358]

Thanks for the info about the pectin/oozing part. My nectarines are showing signs of insect damage and im trying to figure out how to pick nice pieces of fruit to share with friends and neighbors. I wouldnt want to accidentally give them something with bugs under the skin.😅 Some of my nectarines without obvious wounds have small bumps under the skin ...are those bugs or part of the nectarine? The bumps are aize of pin or smaller and they are hard and fruit os firm, not ripe. Thx

[@bcole6502]

Does pectin on the fruit most likely indicate that there is a bug inside?

[@kaleidoscope_adventures]

Yes

[@Fizzling]

Wow!! Patient guy...

[@s.f.morris7331]

looks like you'll get 10 maybe 15 peaches from each tree?

[@TheGrilledCheeseSandwich]

Man, have you considered the sun pounding on that chemical sock? Maybe consider that kaolin powder? Just trying to help.

[@jeanetterudd6915]

I’m in Ohio we havnt had Japanese beetles for 2 years . Don’t know why but it seems like my peach eater might be a raccoon . So thanks for the info

[@HonestHomesteading]

Thankfully we didn't have too much trouble with Japanese beetles this year either. I don't miss them!

[@TriggaTreDay]

So if you use large sheets of tulle you should be good with covering your full tree to keep the animals away. It’s the bugs that seem to be the biggest problem.

[@IAMGiftbearer]

I wish I had seen this before I sprayed. My peaches have fallen off prematurely every year due to some type of borer that eats a hole in them so this year I broke down and sprayed them in hopes I could get them protected long enough to go full term. I have been dying for some good peaches for the past 5 years! I live in Georgia but unless you go to an outdoor Farmer's Market they are all hard as a rock in grocery stores. Also, will your mixture work for cockroaches indoors. Will those go into a container?

[@HonestHomesteading]

If you can try some other varieties, maybe you'll find one more resistant to your borers? And spraying may be a good choice for you this year. If you hit it from every angle this year, maybe you can decrease the bug pressure enough to only do the traps next year. I've never tried this mixture with cockroaches, so I can't say. Good luck!

[@Yuro_eatsplatez]

Stink buggs. Found one on mine today and couldnt figure out the ooozing stuff. Then I seen the culprit. Boiled some garlic and sprayed my tree dowb with that. Gonna see if it helps since stink bugs dont like garlic

[@CrossroadToCountry]

What about honeybees? Do you find them in your jugs?

[@HonestHomesteading]

I don't recall ever finding honeybees in the jugs, but we did catch some yellow jackets.

[@suewingo806]

Why is there black gummy stuff on my peaches

[@faliennata5350]

my concern would be the honey bees, don't want to kill the honey bees

[@vientran8109]

Thank you, I have the same problem on my nectarine trees

[@osofu77]

I have the same issue my nectarine and peaches at the early stages so it’s late for me to save but definitely I am going to try this gallón trap, thanks

[@deniwest57]

Umm, I have at least 1000 peaches on just one tree lol.

[@HonestHomesteading]

Awesome! My trees are loaded this year as well, but since I haven't had time to thin the fruit like I needed to, I've had a few limbs break... So be careful!

[@Fannie_Mae]

@@HonestHomesteading mine broke too 😢

[@georgefeliz7875]

Hello do you have any tricks to keep out squirrels from your fruits?

[@ClintonSmith-op5gb]

Pelletgun

[@waltermurphy8114]

You can spray your tree with Kaolin Clay. It will hide your fruit in plain site. Squirrels and birds don’t like the white powder getting on their feet. It’s organic, look it up. This is not an insecticide.

[@khmerjamesgoodness8712]

👍👍👍

[@BigBudde]

Maaaaaan ... thats too much work

[@AH-yr3ge]

Why did you paint your tree white?

[@HonestHomesteading]

It's painted white because the canopy of that tree wasn't thick enough to protect the bark from the sun. Direct sun exposure for long periods of time without many leaves to block it can damage the bark leading to sun damage that will then lead to disease and pest issues. The white of the paint reflects a lot of the sun rays that would cause that damage, and it can help deter any additional pests from coming in where the bark had already broken.

[@sistersquad6861]

Where did you get the socks?

[@HonestHomesteading]

We found ours on Amazon's website. Shoe stores may carry them as well since they often offer them for people to use when trying on shoes.

[@sistersquad6861]

ThNk you!

[@sheepyleepy..2806]

3:19 the sap part

[@adrienne9757]

does that mixture kill honey bees to?

[@HonestHomesteading]

It might, but they don't seem to be attracted to the smell. I've never found any dead in these traps.

[@ShelleyM007]

Will somebody please tell me how to keep my bees safe when trying these (organic) methods?

[@waltermurphy8114]

Try using Kaolin Clay to hide your fruit in plain site.

[@ShelleyM007]

@@waltermurphy8114 …how does kaolin clay work?

[@jjorangeswirl]

Hope your methods work!

[@HonestHomesteading]

I hope so too!

[@AMarsh-hg9wr]

Where did you buy those covering?

[@HonestHomesteading]

We found ours on Amazon's website. Shoe stores may carry them as well since they often offer them for people to use when trying on shoes.

[@johndowns7536]

Organic peaches? An oxymoron.

[@BadBoyBreeze13]

You forgot to put the banana pill in the jug

[@aghazaidi4447]

How to make this

[@tamelaplamp9849]

How much apple cider vinegar, water, and molasses did you put in jug

[@HonestHomesteading]

We used 1 cup apple cider vinegar to half a cup of molasses and diluted it with probably half a gallon of water. Throughout the season we added additional water as some was lost from evaporation - but we weren't as precise then.

[@Rosie4987]

What type of peach are these?

[@HonestHomesteading]

Starking Delicious (stark bros), Fingerlakes Super Hardy, Curlfree (miller's nursery)

[@friendsforever5012]

Newton variant

[@nchestercountynews4955]

every use clay?

[@HonestHomesteading]

I haven't! Have you tried it?

[@nchestercountynews4955]

@@HonestHomesteading yes it works

[@Ralphie5023]

That's it that was the extent of your wisdom ?

[@emeraldfox7175]

Neem Oil! It's all natural

[@Copyright-di4we]

Pretty expensive too

[@mstreefern]

@@Copyright-di4we And DOES kill honey/pollinator bees

[@Copyright-di4we]

@@mstreefern i use homemade potassium soap. It can be really cheap and it only harms soft bodied insects, so it may not harm the bees, but it may affect certain soft bodied beneficials. I didn't know neem oil was toxic to bees though, thanks for the heads up.

[@2uneak]

Only spray with Neem after flowers are completely gone.

[@c71bomers2000]

Ants are covering our peach,pear trees . Are yall having ant problems too?

[@HonestHomesteading]

I've occasionally seen ants, but usually only on small trees with a lot of new growth. You might check for aphids on the tips of new branches as they are attracted to the nitrogen and the ants like to farm them there. If your ants are just there to farm aphids, then you shouldn't have any issues. If they are living in decaying parts of an older tree or harming your fruit crop, you might need to do something about them.

[@CVenza]

use neem oil!

[@johnmcook1]

spray

[@bhaskarpatel2420]

I have better idea make spray using crushed one onion, two garlic, 2 tablespoons hydrogen peroxide, and one liter of water...make it spray and spray on branches .....not on FRUITS.....hears it.....

[@Anthony-kx6rt]

Gummosis the tree is diseased

[@khmerjamesgoodness8712]

👍👍👍