David Owens, Extension Entomologist, owensd@udel.edu
A sample came in the Diagnostic Clinic earlier this week of fruit with San Jose Scale on it. Orchards with San Jose Scale on fruit should be treated in the winter and a follow up insecticide in the spring targeting first crawlers. There is a good fact sheet from Virginia Tech: https://www.virginiafruit.ento.vt.edu/SJS.html and Penn State (with chemical management links for home garden and commercial growers: https://extension.psu.edu/tree-fruit-insect-pest-san-jose-scale.
Monitor apples for stink bugs. Apples are most attractive between 4 and 8 weeks prior to harvest. There are pheromone traps available for brown marmorated stink bug. Unfortunately, the best stink bug materials are pyrethroids which can disrupt biological controls for other pests and can flare up mites. Alternate row middle sprays can help conserve beneficials.