Question
Hi, I have a nectarine/peach tree in my backyard, and the new young leaves are prematurely curling and have "blister like" formations on the leaves. I also notice a trail of ants going up and down the trunk of the tree. Is this a fungus? Bug? or something else that is causing this? Please let me know what I can do to combat this.
Chris
San Francisco
Answer
You have a fungus known as peach leaf curl. It also affects nectarines. You can spray your tree now with EB Stone Copper spray (a concentrate) or the Bonide Copper Spray (Ready to use). The important ingredient is copper sulphate. This will arrest the spread but affected leaves will still fall prematurely. The best way to prevent it,is to start a spray program in the fall when the leaves fall. Spray again in December and again when buds swell in the spring. If your neighbors have peaches or nectarines, maybe you all can spray at once. The spores can be carried with the wind down the street and over the fence. As for the ants, I suspect they are farming insects, either scale (seen as dark, hard lumps on smaller twigs) or aphids (probably green curled up inside leaves). These insects can be killed by spraying with Bonide All Seasons Oil. The convenience to you is that the copper spray and the oil spray can be mixed and sprayed at the same time. Do not spray when temperatures will exceed 75 degrees. You can also deter the ants by applying a sticky barrier at the base of the tree such as Tanglefoot. Apply a 4"-5" high band around the trunk to literally stop them in their tracks.
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