But...but...they haven't dropped all their leaves yet!

If you miss your dormant sprays you can still get good control if you can get a Kocide copper spray at the first sign of bud color. Ideally you should get one spray now and another in January, but as Carla points out, that is not always possible. If the leaves are not all off, spray anyway, while you have the dry weather. Al

Thanks for the reminder, Carla. I mixed up a batch of microcop and sticker and sprayed away! Just finished up!

Elaine in Merced

THANKS for the reminder!

I don't know much about spraying....should I buy anything from the hardware store for peach leaf curl or do you look for a particular chemical and strength? Do you wear some sort of a mask when you spray or is that unnecessary? How do I know when I've sprayed the tree enough?

thank you so much....I had peach leaf curl (and nectarine brown rot) this last spring and believe-it-or-not forgot now is the season to spray.

lucia in contra costa county usda 9/sunset 14ish

I use MicroCop because, unlike sulphur, it won't harm my apricots (I have been told many times that sulphur, even once, sends apricots into a potentially immediate or eventual slow decline)
I spray everything with MicroCop, starting first with my early peaches, then apricots, the rest of the peaches, plums apples and pears. This year I want to try dormant oil spray for the bugs, but since you are not supposed to do it at the same time as copper sprays, we'll see! (MicroCop is for diseasess--dormant oil smothers the bugs)

As far as leaves, if they haven't dropped by Thanksgiving, I start hand-stripping them. I have read trees that don't go fully dormant every year don't get the "sleep" they need, and gradually die off. You are doing them a favor to strip off their leaves. Plus chill hours don't count until the trees are dormant! This year many of my trees, especially all my apples, needed hand-stripping. I just finished my last one a couple of days ago, a Garden Prince almond.

But I still haven't taken my own advice LOL--I need to do my first spray still, hopefully tomorrow!

Carla in Sac

hmmm....apparently Microcop hasn't been sold for a couple of years.... Vendors are pointing me to Liquicop instead...a copper amonium....have any experience with it? It seems like the effective copper % (after dilution) is weaker...but maybe I"m wrong.........

aaaagh! Did I listen to my own advice?
NO, and this afternoon I noticed little tiny leaves sprouting on the tips of my FlordaKing peach. This is the earliest bud break EVER, despite the fact that the cold nights have really high chill hours accrued so far this year. I guess it's because of the lack of rain or maybe all the daytime sunshine.

TOMORROW I will spray for sure, before any more of my early peaches break out!

Carla in Sac

OK, so THIS year I am really going to get it done, once these rains are gone. Really really!!!

It has been such a warm winter I am afraid the early peaches are going to break buds before New Year's, so there really is no time to lose!

Carla in Sac

I stripped leaves over the weekend and sprayed today! I think this is the first time I've sprayed this early. I'm hoping I can do a second spray in a few weeks.

I do dormant oil and copper at the same time. Oops. But not yet this season. Mix is at the ready; waiting for a break. Shoot.