Need Help Identifying Brown Leaf Spots on Young Fruit Trees

8 years ago

My wife and I planted an orchard of 18 bare-root dwarf and semi-dwarf fruit trees in early May. The trees all came out of dormancy quickly and have been doing quite well. Most now sport new shoots 6-8" long along the trunk.

I've made it a habit to stroll through the orchard every day after I get home from work. Just yesterday, I noticed some rather severe brown spotting that was affecting primarily my two Starkspur Golden Delicious apples that are on M9/M26 rootstock (Stark Bros. couldn't confirm which). The Fuji, Gala, and Honeycrisp apples do not display these spots and are interspersed between the two Golden Delicious trees. Photos of the spots are below.

Can anyone help me identify what's plaguing these two trees? They appear otherwise healthy and vivacious. The spotting literally appeared in a span of 1-2 days.

I also noted 1-2 blackened leaves on my Stanley Prune Plum tree. The Fellenberg plum next to it does not display these symptoms. Photo below.

Any and all input as to what may be causing these issues would be appreciated!

Featured Answer

wolfridgeil

8 years ago

Interesting because the damage is mainly at leaf tip. I see few pictures on the web that show the same type of damage. But I believe I may have seen something similar on my apples, though I spray regularly and cannot recall the last occurrence. If you can find some eggs on your trees it might help the identification process.

Seems to be some sort of leafroller (duh)...

http://www.gardeningknowhow.com/plant-problems/pests/insects/leafroller-damage-control.htm

also scroll down on this page...

http://cesantabarbara.ucanr.edu/?blogstart=6&blogasset=26598

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Comments (6)

schwartzy18510
Original Author
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
By way of an update, I initially began exploring the symptoms of fungal diseases such as cedar apple rust, apple scab, alternaria leaf spot, and entomosporium leaf spot. However, none of the photos I could find of these infections exactly matched the leaf spots on my trees.

Yesterday I checked the trees again and found that the brown spots appeared to be forming raised areas on the leaves. In an effort to identify what was going on, I broke one of the small brown "pockets" open and found a larvae inside, about 1/4" long. I opened several of the other raised areas on the leaf spots and found a larvae in each. Any idea what insect these could belong to?
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Bradybb WA-Zone8
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
I planted some bare root stone fruit trees in containers,earlier this year.It's been getting hot here on some days.Some of the trees leaf tips look like the ones in your photos.Mine may be doing it because of the inability of the root system to adequately provide enough water to the plant,during the hottest days.I'm not really concerned,because overall,they are growing and looking good. Brady
schwartzy18510 thanked Bradybb WA-Zone8
schwartzy18510
Original Author
8 years ago
Wolfridgeil - I too thought it odd that the damage started primarily at the leaf tip. My suspicions right now are either the Spotted Tentiform Leafminer or the Apple Leafminer, but I'm still not sure I have a positive ID. The damaged leaves visible in the second link you provided look very similar to the leaves on my trees, although the larvae were much, much smaller than the caterpillar pictured.

In an effort to rid the trees of the problem, I took the time to pinch each "tent" that had formed, with the intent of killing whatever larvae resided within. Barring a second generation of the pest, this should rid my trees of the problem for this year. Interestingly, it primarily affected only two of the six apples trees.

Bradybb - If you have fruit trees that are displaying similar symptoms, be sure that small "tents" aren't forming on the leaves. If they are, I encourage you to open one up to see what you find.
wolfridgeil
8 years ago
Any chance it is the Apple Leafcurling Midge?

http://www.tfrec.wsu.edu/pages/opm/ALM
schwartzy18510 thanked wolfridgeil
schwartzy18510
Original Author
8 years ago
The small larvae of the Midges look a lot like the ones I found on my two apple trees, but none of my leaves exhibited the leaf curling illustrated in the photos available at the above link. That's a pest I hadn't yet heard of though.