Problem Identifier Unit Screen//v.w/ RR Template

Problem Identifier Unit Screen//v.w/ RR Template Apple Maggot

Problem
The fruit may be dimpled and pitted, with brown trails winding through the flesh. White, tapered, legless maggots about 3/8 inch long may be present in the fruit. Severely infested apples are brown and pulpy inside. Frequently, many apples drop prematurely.

Analysis
(Rhagoletis pomonella)

These worms, also known as railroad worms and apple fruit flies, are the larvae of flies that resemble the common housefly. Apple maggots infest plums, cherries, and pears in addition to apples. The adult flies emerge from pupae between late June and the beginning of September. They lay eggs in the fruit through holes they puncture in the skin. The maggots that emerge from the eggs make brown trails through the flesh as they feed. Infested apples usually drop to the ground. The mature maggots emerge from the apple and burrow in the soil to pupate. They remain in the soil throughout the winter, and emerge as adult flies the following June.

Solution
There is no way to kill the maggots after apples are infested. Protect healthy apples from the adult flies by spraying at intervals of 7 to 10 days from the end of June until the beginning of September with an insecticide containing carbaryl or malathion. Pick up and destroy fallen apples every week throughout the summer.

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