Source: NCSU COOPERATIVE EXTENSION, 5/3/22

What a strange spring it has been! On many cultivars in Western NC, you can observe three phenology stages concurrently on the tree: bloom, petal fall, and 10 mm fruit. This is my 6th apple season here in NC and I cannot recall my blossom blight trials being so difficult to time. Of course that translates to several blossom blight infection events for commercial growers!

In the south, petal fall is normally the time we begin the transition from intensive “early season” disease management to more intensive “summer disease” management programs. Intensive management programs is the key take-home here as fruit loss last year reduced the number of fungicide applications being made.Since many of the Glomerella and Botryosphaeria fungi cannot distinguish between leaf and fruit tissue, this means abundant inoculum (from last year’s infected leaves) is likely still hanging out in or near the orchard.

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