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APPLE MAGGOT 



By the time you read this we will be well into the apple maggot season. Along 

 with plum curculio, the apple maggot enjoys the reputation of being one of the three 

 most serious pests of apples in Massachusetts. Do I need to remind you that the 

 third is apple scab? 



The apple maggot is a serious pest in both comiiiercial and home orchards. In 

 fact, the problem is made more acute in areas v/here there is an intermingling of 

 home orchards, abandoned orchards or individual trees, and commercial blocks. 



The period of fly activity — it is a fly that lays the eggs which hatch into 

 the maggots found tunneling the flesh — extends from about trie 20th of Juine, well 

 into August or even into September, Our most effective control measures, at present, 

 are directed against the fly. It is important that there be no let-up in control 

 measures during this period, 



THE BISECT 



Since the full grown maggots crawled out of dropped apples last suminer or fall, 

 they have remained in the soil. underneath the tree from which the apples fell. Most 

 of them stayed within the upper two inches of duff and soil. They have been enclos- 

 ed in the hardened skin of the final maggot stage resembling a small kernel of wiieat 

 except for the rings encircling the structure. 



During the spring and summer the transformation from mag;^ot stage to adult flies 

 occurs, and now, each day brings more flies to the surface. This is what we call 

 fly emergence. 



The fly itself is soraevfhat smaller than a housefly and has wings conspicuously 

 banded with black. On the female there are four conspicuous white bands encircling 

 the body. On the smaller male there is room for but three such bands. 



The female flies are not ready to lay eggs immediately. This is very important 

 to you because you have a chance to kill them before they start laying eggs. For 

 about 7 days after emergence, flies feed by lapping the surfaces of leaves and fruit 

 of whatever type of plant they happen to be on. Often there are nearly as many flies 

 in hedgerows beside the orchard as there are actually in the orchard, 



A single fly has been known to live about 130 days although it is quite probable 

 that under field conditions 30 days might be considered near the maximum. A single 

 female has been known to lay over 300 eggs with the average, under laboratory condi- 

 tions, being about 160, Please note that this egg laying occurs after the pre-egg- 

 laying period of about 7 days, 



FLY ElviERGENGE 



This is important because of its relationship to control practices. 



Studies made over a great many years have indicated that the time when the 

 first flies emerge each season does not vary much from year to year. However, accord- 

 ing to Dr. Ralph Dean of the Poughkeepsie Laboratory of the New York State Agricul- 

 tural Experiment Station, the date of peak emergence in his cages has varied from 

 as early as July 10 to as late as July 30, ¥e would expect it to be somewhat later 

 here in Massachusetts and I believe Professor VJhitcorab's records have shown tliat the 

 average peak date at Walthara is nearer July 20 than the July 15 date indicated by 

 records at Poughkeepsie, 



