When a pear tree suffers from pear scab, its foliage will be covered in irregular, yellow-orange spots. It doesn't look nice, but it will pass. But the rust fungus doesn't stop at its fruits either. Are the affected specimens still fully edible?
My pear tree has pear trellis, what do I do with the fruit?
Usually only the leaves of the pear tree are affected by the infection. Only in cases of severe infestation do the fruits show deformation and fall off before they are fully ripe. You can stilleat these pears safely, butdon't store them for too long.
Does pear rust damage the fruits of the pear tree?
Infection with the fungus Gymnosporangium sabinae, which is responsible for pear rust, begins in spring and lasts until autumn. The infestation consequently accompanies the pollination of the flowers and the entire development of the fruits. It makes sense to assume that it also damages the fruit. But the typical damage pattern shows that almost always only the leaves are infected. Onlyif the infestation is very severe are the fruits also affected. Their development is inhibited, they show unsightly deformations and fall off a little before their time. But they are actually still usable.
Can I also process and store the fruit?
If the pear fruits fall off before they are fully ripe due to a severe infestation, they cannot remain fresh for as long as they would otherwise, even under ideal storage conditions. If you can't eat them all fresh in a timely manner, the fruits can also be boiled, frozen or processed in another way.
How can I prevent pear rust from affecting fruit?
You cannot protect the fruitsseparatelyThe infestation of the foliage cannot be effectively combated unless the intermediate host juniper can be found and removed at the same time. Because it can also root in the neighboring garden or up to 1 km away. However, you can try to care for the pear tree optimally and make it more resilient with aplant strengthening agent, for example field horsetail broth. Then he survives the infection unscathed.
Are there any pear varieties that are resistant to pear rust?
There are no pear varieties that are completely safe from pear grillage. But there are varieties that areless susceptible to this. These include:
- ‘Benita’
- ‘Colorful July’
- ‘Clapp’s Darling’
- ‘Condo’
- 'Double Phillips'
- ‘Early Trevoux’
- ‘Gellert’s Butter Pear’
- ‘Countess of Paris’
- ‘Good Luise’
- ‘Nashi’
Tip
Red dots on pear tree leaves represent another disease
Pear trellis causes orange, uneven spots on the leaves. However, if red dots become visible on the top and bottom of the leaves, you are probably dealing with the pest pear pox mite. It also only needs to be combated if there is a severe infestation.
