Why Is My Peach Tree Dropping Fruit?

Identification

• Peach trees are susceptible to peach leaf curl disease caused by Taphrina deformans. Disease symptoms become evident at bud swell during early spring. Fungal growth is favored at temperatures of 50 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit

Damage

• The disease is characterized by curling and deformed foliage. Affected leaves change colors to light green, yellow and shades of purple and red. Infected fruit starts to drop early. The fruit that remains on the tree becomes deformed and crooked at the stem end. The surface of the fruit displays wart-like growths in shades of red and purple.

Control

• Keeping your peach trees in good health with adequate irrigation and nitrogen-rich fertilizers will help reduce incidence of fruit drop. As preventive measures, you may apply dormant sprays, such as copper sulfate or liquid lime sulfur, after trees have lost 90 percent of the foliage in fall or just prior to spring bud swell.