Topic: Pear Problem

[Svengali]

I have just gone round my five fruit trees to put up bird netting, but although the cherry, plum, eating & cooking apples look fine, my pear tree seems very sick. The leaves all have brown edges, & some appear to have been eaten away in patches. I cant SEE any insects, but is it possible? Most serious symptom is the total lack of any fruit, while the others are coming on nicely.
I did a surface dressing of fish, blood and bonemeal in the early spring.

[jennym]

A photo would be a help, but could be scab, which is a fungal disease and can look like this:
http://www.flpa-images.co.uk/bin/flpa.dll/go?a=disp&pt=1&t=us\sr-loadersearch.html&si=&tc=&usp=0&_spb=0&_spe=0&_spw=0&mw=2&se=&_collection=&_filterori=&searchtext=00084264
Scab does make the fruit drop when it's really small so this might be why you don't have any.

If it is scab, hygiene is important to control it, pick up & destroy infected leaves, and you could use a fungicide such as Dithane.

[Svengali]

Hi, thanks for the reply - your link certainly looked like my problem, but just to be sure, I attach 3 pics (I Hope!)
Incidentaly, do I need to net my apples, or only the cherries and plums?
Jeremy

[Svengali]

I knew that I wouldn't get it right!

[Svengali]

And the last one!