So Dissapointed

I have been watching the pears grew and ripen for months. Had visions of bottled pears, poached pears, pear chutney, making Perry and Pear wine. It has all come to nothing and i am so disappointed. Last year I thought I had worked out how to keep the apples and pears free of the dreaded coddling moth.  
 
Last Years harvest 
I have had my traps out for ages and they seemed to be catching lots of moths however as the first of the pears ripened it was clear there was a problem, they were rotten and brown on the inside despite looking almost perfect on the outside. I clung to my hopes for a while but this morning it was evident that even the Beurre Boscs had coddling moth. I have stripped both trees and fed them to the poultry.



Such a shame. When I read last years entry two things stand out, firstly the harvest was about six weeks later, so i wonder what impact that has had plus the very humid weather. The other is that I put the exclusion bags on last year and I am so annoyed with myself that I didn't at least put some on. The apples had them on, mainly to protect from the sun, and they had no coddling moth so i am hoping that the quinces, which also have bags on, will be OK. I guess I was over confident and will have to learn from my mistakes.
While I was picking up all the pears on the ground
I noticed this pumpkin that has grown on the passionfruit vine. What a beauty, it made me smile anyway.

 

Comments

Tracy said…
Sorry about your pears. I hope your other fruit fares better. We are always learning in the garden, it keeps it interesting.
February 25, 2011 at 2:22 PM
Christie said…
It is so disappointing to see so much waste. Although not entirely, I'm sure the chooks enjoyed them! Fingers crossed for your quinces!
February 27, 2011 at 9:49 AM
sharleigh.stevenson said…
What have you used in the past to try and control the coddling moth? I grew garlic under my tree, and maybe it was just a coincidence but haven't seen damage for several years.
March 2, 2011 at 9:59 PM
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