About 50%of the pear-sized quinces on our tree are rotting. Though we've always had a few do this, this year is extreme. Is this some form of tree problem (perhaps cured by spraying in the winter) or an insect-based infestation? The tree is over 50 years old and when it began to shed leaves in July about 5 years ago, I pruned it back heavily in the December and sprayed it with Morteg, which seemed to work as we've had great crops these past 3 years.
Any advice gratefully received.
quince rotting
Moderators: KG Steve, Chantal, Tigger, peter
Hi John
Is this the brown rot which also affects apples? If so, it may be a hygiene problem. The advice in the books is to remove and destroy all the affected fruit, including any lying on the ground. Don't leave mummified fruit on the tree as these will be a source of infection in future years. I say 'advice in the books' because I'm not always as good as I should be in following this advice. Also, we've finally got rid of our quince this summer. Brown rot was a minor problem. Worse was some kind of blight which affected the leaves and fruit every summer. You're suppused to spray twice against that in the season with Bordeaux mixture - not easy on a large, mature tree. Plus, with the dry summers we've been getting, the tree was suffering. I believe in the wild they live on the edge of streams...
Is this the brown rot which also affects apples? If so, it may be a hygiene problem. The advice in the books is to remove and destroy all the affected fruit, including any lying on the ground. Don't leave mummified fruit on the tree as these will be a source of infection in future years. I say 'advice in the books' because I'm not always as good as I should be in following this advice. Also, we've finally got rid of our quince this summer. Brown rot was a minor problem. Worse was some kind of blight which affected the leaves and fruit every summer. You're suppused to spray twice against that in the season with Bordeaux mixture - not easy on a large, mature tree. Plus, with the dry summers we've been getting, the tree was suffering. I believe in the wild they live on the edge of streams...
...and a PS to the above. I thought later that one of the reasons why you are experiencing such a high proportion of rotting quince this year may be to do with the drought here in the south-east. Birds get desperate for water and peck fruit for moisture, thus letting in the organism that causes rotting. They've been a menace on our apples this year, with a similar result.