What's new, what's growing, what we're learning. Updates, guides and stories for people who take their garden seriously.
Fruit that rots brown on the tree and carries pale spore cushions in rings: brown rot. Why the fungus enters almost only through wounds, why the overwintering mummified fruit is the key, and how to curb the rot without sprays.
In spring the peach leaves blister, curl and turn red: peach leaf curl. Why you can fight it only before leaf-out, how a rain roof protects the tree, and which varieties shrug off the attack better.
Fire blight is the most dangerous pome fruit disease and notifiable. How to recognise the suddenly scorched-looking shoots with the typical shepherds crook, why you must not prune yourself, and what to do on suspicion.
Brown patches on apples and foliage: apple scab is almost unavoidable in wet years. How to recognise it on leaf and fruit, why scab-resistant varieties save all spraying in the home garden, and what else helps.
Bright orange spots on the pear leaf: pear rust looks dramatic but has a decisive weakness. It absolutely needs a juniper as its second host. How to break the cycle and get rid of the rust for good.
An identification helper for the five commonest fruit tree diseases: apple scab, fire blight, brown rot, pear rust and peach leaf curl. How to recognise each by its damage, why fire blight is notifiable, and how an airy crown and tree hygiene prevent most problems.
Maggots in cherries need not be. Why early varieties out-ripen the cherry fruit fly, how yellow traps and a net help, and how to break the cycle in the soil.
The sour cherry bears on one-year-old wood and goes bare without pruning. How to divert the spent whips onto young shoots after the harvest, and why it differs from the sweet cherry.
Why the winter cut drives growth and the summer cut slows it, how to get rid of water sprouts and bring light to the fruit, and why cherries are a special case.
