Natural & Organic Fruit Tree Sprays

Since insects and insect eggs will overwinter in the bark of fruit trees, it is essential that trees be sprayed in the early spring. However, rather than using synthetic insecticides/ pesticides which can be detrimental to you and the environment, you may want to consider using one of the following environmentally safe Natural or Organic fruit tree sprays instead.

These organic or natural fruit tree sprays are every bit as capable of gettting  rid of the overwintering insects and insects eggs lodged in the bark of your trees before they  hatch and begin multiplying.  Any of the following fruit tree sprays will do the job: A Dormant Spray mixture, the horticultural oil
and water mixture only, a natural home- made spray mixture.

Organic Fruit Tree Sprays:  Dormant Spray Combination (“Combo”)

The Dormant Spray Mixture is a very well-known organic fruit tree spray.  Its downside is that it must be  used only in early spring while the tree is still dormant and before the buds break.

This organic fruit tree spray , the Dormant Spray, is usually comprised of two ingredients which must be mixed according to specific instructions. The first ingredient, the horticultural Oil, is used to  smother all overwintering insects and/or their eggs (one of the reasons  why the spraying must be done in early spring before the insect eggs hatch). The second ingredient, lime sulphur, is a natural fungicide which kills dormant fungus spores or bacteria on the plant.  This organic fruit tree spray can be used as a combination of the two ingredients (Horticultural oil and lime sulphur), or you may choose to use the horticultural oil only.

If you choose to use the Dormant Spray “combo” as your organic fruit tree spray, you must use this spray in a very precise way at a very precise time in the early spring.   Although this mixture is an organic fruit tree spray, a spray which is safe for the environment and will not leave poisonous residual on your fruit, the spray mixture of both the lime sulphur and the horticultural oil can be used only under the following conditions if you wish to be successful.

You must

1.   Spray your fruit trees before the buds swell and break into leaf; otherwise you risk burning your buds

2. Choose a day when the temperature will remain at or above 0 degrees Celsius (32 degrees F)  for a minimum of 24 hours.

The oil part of the spray needs time to smother insects or their eggs, but a cold  night will break down the oil before it has a chance to be effective. However, if it happens to freeze after the 24 hour period, there is no harm done.

3. Do not use this lime sulphur/horticultural oil combination  if your temperature goes above 20 Celsius (70 degrees F) for you will burn your tree bark and your buds.

4.  Spray when there is very little or no wind (early in the morning is best) If you spray when there is wind, your neighbor may not be too happen getting all this spray in his yard or on his buildings.  Besides, how can the organic fruit spray stick to your plants if it is blown away by the wind; plus you certainly don’t want that stuff blowing back in your face or on you.

5. Be sure there is no rain, snow or sleet in the forecast to allow the Dormant Spray to coat and dry effectively, and your organic fruit tree spray mixture will have time to do its work.

6. Read the instructions carefully two or three times . Be sure you mix the lime sulphur and horticulture oil according to the instructions on the package. Ask your supplier at the garden center for further information if you are not sure.

7.  Mix only what you can use to spray your fruit trees, for you cannot save the prepared solution for use later.

8.  Cover up well. The mixing of these ingredients and the actual spraying can be a very messy job, so wear protective clothing, long sleeves, a hat, chemical-resistant gloves (sulphur can burn so kitchen rubber gloves will not work)  and anti-splash goggles.

Since you must spray your tree from the top down until it drips, you are likely to get some on you; therefore, COVER YOURSELF WELL.

Here in Ontario, Canada, the best time to spray fruit trees with this Dormant Spray “Combo” is late March early April.  Our rule of thumb is to spray our fruit trees with Dormant Spray before Easter, and we should be OK.

Another Organic Fruit Tree Spray:  Horticultural Oil/ Water Only

If you have no fungus or bacteria problem, you may want to spray with the agricultural Oil and water mixture only.  Different amounts of  agricultural oil  can be bought at your local gardening center.

I did use this Dormant Spray Combo on my peach, pear, apple, plum, and cherry trees for a few years, but since I was working every day, I found it difficult being able to do the spraying when the weather was just right.

Therefore, I then switched to spraying with only the horticultural oil/water mixture especially since horticultural oil can be used all summer as long as the spraying is done early in the morning when the weather is cooler and the tree has had time to cool off. In addition, this method, although messy too,  is a lot less messy than having to deal with the lime sulpher and has the advantages of not being restricted by weather conditions.

Home-Made Natural Fruit Tree Spray

However, one day I came across this natural fruit tree spray recipe which I could make with ingredients found in the kitchen or at a gardening center.  Not only  could I use this natural fruit tree spray early in the spring but also throughout the summer whenever I felt it was needed.  I had to test it on new foliage, but generally speaking, the fruit trees just loved this fruit tree spray which was made up of natural ingredients,  easy to make, and easy to spray.

I got to the point where I kept this spray on hand and used it on all my plants, trees, roses (not evergreens) — wherever I felt insects were present.  I felt this spray was better for the environment and I did not have to worry about residual poison on my fruit or killing the bees.  I could spray fruit trees even in the daytime, although I would not recommend spraying when the temperature is above 80 degrees F.(30 Celsius)

If you are interested in finding out more about this natural fruit tree spray, you will find the recipe and detailed explanations at my other blog, PestControlOptions.com and under the category Fungal Diseases look for the article “NaturalSprays for Fruit Trees” .

Tags:dormant spray,fruit tree spray,home-made fruit tree spray,horticultural oil spray,natural fruit tree sprays,organic fruit tree sprays,organic spray for apple trees

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