Newbie:

Where is the sap leakage located on the tree? Up on the branches, or at the base around the graft? How old is the tree, and how large? The classic large borer usually shows up at the base of the tree or even under the soil line, while the lesser borer is usually found higher on the tree on the scaffold branches. Borer activity usually generates some visible sawdust as well as sap/gel, and it is usually possible to remove the gel and locate the borer holes. Have you looked for these holes?

Blobs of sap or gel can also result from bacterial canker infections, but they usually begin to occur after the trees have some age, say 10 years or so. If these are present on branches, the best thing to do is to cut off the branches close to the trunk. Bacterial diseases can easily spread to other areas of the tree. I seem to have been able to practically eliminate bacterial disease on my own peach trees with dormant copper sprays, but I am not absolutely certain of the cause and effect here. But certainly getting rid of infected branches is good practice. Bacterial diseases can blow in from other infected trees, such as wild cherries or other stone fruits that receive little care.

Google "peach tree borer" to find recommendations of chemicals used on the pest. The title of your post may need some editing.

Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

Hi Don, yes, I mis-typed the title to the post. :-) I guess I had (Asian) pears on the brain.

The damage is on the first scaffold branch, right at the intersection to the trunk, about 3' above ground. There was also sap from the damage from the cat scratching the trunk; but this sap is higher.
I did try to locate a borer hole last fall when I noticed the sap, but having limited knowledge of what to look for, I let it pass until now, when I am reading up on insect and disease management for the rest of the winter and into spring. Like I said, it had no visible frass/sawdust. I would guess LPTB if it were a borer at all. I did google borers and read up on them some.

This tree is 3yrs old, going into the 4th year this spring. It did yield last year, but I thinned the fruits considerably, so it only had about 20 peaches. It is about as big as I want it now, at 12'. It's on a standard rootstock (I have no idea which one). I do wish I had chosen more widely spread scaffolds, as these are a bit narrow at around 40-50 degrees from the trunk. This is one of the largest scaffold limbs, too.

Thanks for your interest.
Mark

Ok, so I checked out the damage at noon today. I haven't really looked at it in detail since October. I do see black bits of frass in the sap. Peeling/cutting back the sap revealed two holes--most definitely a borer(s). So now what? Remove the limb, or are there other means of killing the critters? As I said, it is right above the trunk intersection, on the inside portion of the scaffold branch. I have three other peach trees which are only a year old, so I don't want to risk establishing a population of these fellows in my trees. I realize they travel quite far, but all the same, I don't need them any closer than I have to.
From what I read, killing them is best done by injection or with a wire, following the bore holes. Any other ideas?

Newbie:

Do a little googling using keywords like "peach tree borers" and you will find a range of suggestions for chemicals to kill borers. Thiodan is one of them, but there are several others that are still available, and though you may have trouble finding an effective chemical locally, you can usually do better with an online search.

Discovering that your problem is borers is actually good news. Bacterial infections are more persistent and difficult to deal with. At least with borers you can kill the d__n things.

I can't figure out if NE means Nebraska or New England, but in either event you may have trouble with the oriental fruit moth on your peaches as the trees begin to actually bear. Symptoms are small penetrations that form pectin or sap on the little developing fruits. If this insect turns out to be a problem for you, look into using the nylon shoe store try-on "footies" to protect the peaches. I have used these by the hundreds for a couple of years now, and have more an better peaches than at any time in the past, and I am doing it with no spraying at all following bagging.

Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

Hi Don,
NE (in this case) stands for Nebraska. Slow day here, so I will be searching the 'net for more info. I'll also talk to our county extension agent.

Thanks for the info on the bagging. We do try to go as close to organic as we can around our home, so that's nice to know. I also have two children of a capable age, with an interest in fruits, who can help bag:-). As far as I know, peaches do pretty well around here wrt pests. But I don't know any orchardists around here, either.

FWIW, I also have the following trees:

Apple:
Goldrush, Liberty, Honeycrisp
(I assume bagging is the way to go on these, too. CM is all over around here.)

Asian Pear:
Olympic Giant; Hosui

Cherry:
Northstar, Ranier, Montmorency

Apricot:
Stark Sweetheart, Goldcot

Peach:
Reliance (the one with the borers), Blushingstar, Elberta, and a volunteer I didn't have the heart to kill. It's from a white, storebought peach pit my two oldest children "planted". The rabbits have been ruthless to it (It's the only one that they have really damaged). If it survives, it will be a wonder!

All these trees are just starting their second year, except the Montmorency (4 yrs old) and the Goldrush (2 yrs). Poor Montmorency has been thru hail, hard late freezes and has not yet borne any fruit. Hopefully it will bear this summer.
We also have blackberries (Apache or Arapahoe, I forget), Raspberries-Heritage, and strawberries. So we have plenty to do, but I wouldn't mind adding a plum or two (or three...). But that's enough for now. DW would kill me if I took on anything else right now.

Thanks again.
Mark