Apples and pears can both be victims of the codling moth. This moth lays eggs which hatch into worms which eat their way into either apples or pears as well as some other fruits. This, of course, ruins the fruit and makes it unsellable. My father fought this problem in his orchards for as long as I can remember. Some early sprays for this bug included lead arsenic, sulphur, and horticulture oil. These were only partially effective and had to be applied almost weekly. A big side effect of this regimen was that the horses that pulled the spray machine would get lead poisoning and would become very ill. The person doing the spraying had to wear a respirator to keep from getting the poison.
In the late 40s a new pesticide, DDT, was introduced into the market and seemed to be the wonder pesticide that would solve all of the farmers’ problems. It had to be used only once in the spring and would control the codling moth and other pests for the entire summer. It killed everything. It would kill the grasshoppers. The cats would then eat these dead grasshoppers and the cats would die. It did not take long for the scientific community to realize that this pesticide was an environmental disaster. It was soon banned for use anywhere and as far as I know is now banned world wide. It was a good example of how man can negatively disrupt the natural environment in an attempt to solve some problem.
By Richard Gappmayer
Interesting. What is being done now? Is another pesticide being used? Anything natural?
I remember DDT and all the problems.
How to solve problems in the natural environment is difficult. Where I live we have a big upturn in the coyote population with dogs and pets being eaten and people are scared. Kids can’t go out to play alone. My friend went out to run the other day and was stared down by a coyote in the middle of the road. The town issued free air horns to people to carry to scare them away. How to deal with it is a huge debate in our town with people taking sides on how to handle it. I think there are fewer smaller animal kingdom creatures with the advance of coyotes and foxes and so on here….and this suburbia, not truly rural.
I love the photo of the farm with the mountains in the distance. Absolutely a gorgeous piece of heaven.
Kathy,
I think that DDT has been banned everywhere in the world, though I’m not sure about that. Other sprays are used, but they have problems too. I heard that they sprayed for mosquitoes in Florida to stop the spread of the ZIKA virus and killed millions of honeybees–which makes me very sad. Honeybees have a very special place in my heart, not to mention the ecosystem.
Coyotes? That is crazy. In my neck of the woods, we have herds of mule deer that live right in town and eat all the flowers and bushes in our gardens. Cities are grappling with what to do. It is now legal to shoot a deer within the city limits, but it has to be with a bow and it has to be during the day. I don’t have a bow, and I don’t know what I would do with the carcass if I actually shot a deer. I guess it is one of the consequences of us humans encroaching on their habitat. Who knows what the solution is?
That photo was taken at my dad’s house. They have a lovely piece of property right up against the mountains. Beautiful!
There are several natural ones that they can use on the market. My husband is the head of the mosquito control department where we live. He only uses the natural ones that don’t harm bees, people, or animals. I was shocked when I saw the story last week. Apparently they don’t have someone that it qualified to run theirs. My husband has to take numerous classes and training every year. He has to answer to the federal government for everything.
Cheryl,
That is very interesting. I was shocked about that story too because they are usually so careful. Someone was obviously unqualified to be spreading poisons in such a cavalier fashion. They need someone like your husband down there!
Hi Jennifer, I grew up in rural Minnesota and we had “pet” blackbirds. They were tame and would come in and out of the house and play with the dog and cat. They came by one night with a large spray truck and the birds were outside and we found ours and just about every bird around lying dead on the ground. It was so heartbreaking to my 7 year old mind. I have never forgotten that day.
Oh, that makes me so sad! There are definitely worse things than wormy apples.