Something is growing in five or six leaves of my young pear tree. On the upper surface they look like rusty red spots with black centers, about 1/2" long. The horror is on the back, where there's a hard swelling with tiny white tufts coming out of it. They're fuzzy and make my skin crawl. The tufts were white when I first picked the leaves, have gone brown since. Help me work out what this is? Thanks.
Frith, your pear tree has "Pear Trellis Rust". We have seen more of it each year at the Master Gardener Clinics In Anacortes and in Mt Vernon. The site listed below is one of the best I've found for an over-all view of what your dealing with. barb Pear Trellis Rust (Figure 1), caused by the fungus Gymnosporangium sabinae (G. fuscum), has been confirmed in several locations in Southern Ontario recently ... www.omafra.gov.on.ca/english/crops/hort/.../23hrt07a2.htm Well that didn't work! Google Pear Trellis Rust and look for the above address. It was the first one to come up when I did it. b
That's it Barbara. Thanks for your confirmation... Now, there's so much conflicting information about how far the spores will spread, whether the tree is doomed once infected or not. I've read completely contradictory information (get out the chainsaw, versus, "not fatal but yields may suffer") that I'm not sure whether to act or not. I have copper spray for my cherry tree and will give that a go on the next sunny day, and again in the Spring, but there doesn't seem to be much very current information on treatments. We have one small juniper in our yard but our neighbors have many, and they're common in our suburb. Removing the junipers is not an option, I don't think! I guess we'll hang on to the tree as long as we can.
That's about the same conclusion most have come to. Wait and see what happens. DO rake up all fallen leaves and pull off what you can that are infected. Bag them and put them in the trash and do not compost them. If it starts again next yr, pulling off the infected leaves (depending on the size of the tree) and distroying them before they form the spores may help. Check with your King County Extension Agent. They might have some idea's. barb
