College of Agriculture & Natural Resources

• Brown rot

  Infected flowers turn brown, wither, and either become fixed to twigs as a gummy mass or drop like unpollinated flowers.

• Verticillium wilt

  Leaves wilted or browned on one or several branches, often remaining attached; the rest of the tree appears healthy. Young trees are often killed by infection.

• Lesser peachtree borer

  Adult is a clear-winged, metallic-blue moth that has two or more yellow bands across the abdomen, giving it a wasp-like appearance.

• Tufted apple bud moth

  Adult is an inconspicuous moth, varying from mottled gray at the wing base to brown at the wing tip, with a lighter colored margin along the wing's leading edge. Two or three groups of tufted scales can be seen on the top of the wings.

• Twospotted spider mite

  Adult and nymphal mites are yellowish to pale green with a dorsal pair of apparent dark "spots". Males are smaller than females and have a pointed abdomen. The female takes on an orange tinge in the fall.

• Sparganothis fruitworm

  Adult is a vivid yellow moth with grayish magenta V-shaped marks on the forewings and reddish orange lace-like markings. Larvae are pale green with yellowish-green head.

• Widestriped green fruitworm

  The adult has bluish or steel gray wings marked with inconspicuous mottled patches.

• Spiders: Foliage Hunters

  The body of a spider is divided into two regions, the cephalothorax and abdomen. The cephalothorax bears the eyes (various numbers and arrangements), mouthparts, pedipalps and legs (four pairs), and the unsegmented abdomen bears the genital structures, spiracles, anus and spinnerets (silk-spinning structures).

• Humped green fruitworm

  Adult's forewings are gray and marked with light and dark areas for 2/3 of their length the outer 1/3 is a lighter gray.

• Apple sucker

  Adult resembles a miniature cicada, greenish yellow to yellow in color but sometimes containing reds or browns, with eyes pale green to reddish brown, and long slender antennae; wings are transparent and iridescent.

• Peach bark beetle

  Adult's body is brown with many punctures, from which arise yellowish hairs. The larva is a small, legless grub.

• Pear plant bug (Green apple bug)

  The adult pear plant bug is brownish yellow with two dark bands on the thorax and the extremities of its anterior wings are yellowish in color.

• Dogwood borer

  The adult is bluish black with yellow bands and has clear wings, resembling a wasp. Larva is creamy white to pink with a sclerotized reddish head.

• Southern blight

  Trees attacked by the fungus show a general decline. In the early phase of disease, a dense mat or web of white mycelium is evident at the base of the tree.

• Climbing cutworms

  Adults are dark brown or grayish colored moths. Larvae tend to be smooth caterpillars with few hairs, brown or black head capsules, and bodies a dull gray-brown background color with stripes, spots, or dark brown, black, yellow or white splotches.

• Snowy tree cricket

  Adult somewhat resembles a field cricket, but is pale green in color and has a longer, more slender body and smaller head. Antennae are much longer than the body; males have stiff veins in their flat wings.

• Black cherry aphid

  Adults and nymphs are shiny black soft-bodied insects; adults may or may not have wings. Nymphs are smaller, but generally similar in appearance to the adults.

• Root-lesion nematode

  Root-lesion nematodes are microscopic, migratory endoparasites that feed on the root systems of many crops. Affected trees appear stunted, may exhibit chlorosis or yellowing of the leaves, and have poor yields; young trees may be killed.

• Apple seed chalcid

  Adult is a small, dark wasp with a bright green head, thorax and abdomen with coppery or bronze metallic reflections, brownish yellow legs, clear hyaline wings, and a long ovipositor.

• Dusky stink bug

  Stink bug adults have a broad, flattened, shield-shaped body and a narrow head. The dusky stink bug is dark brown, with sharp shoulder projections.