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Gaack!

Usually the beetles wait till after the start of our summer rains to ruin my Brown Turkey crop, but this year it looks like they're off to an early start. My first two "ripe" figs of the season included this little gem and another just like it. Can't wait for my closed-eye varieties to grow up!

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fortunately, I have yet to find any beetle damage on my fruit.

Has any one tried to seal the hole with something? Maybe and injection of karo into the hole. It dries firm and it's edible.

Ruben, you're a lucky guy. Count your blessings!


Celt, I've covered branches with sleeves of mosquito netting (birds peck holes in the netting and the beetles get in through the holes), experimented with putting small pieces of masking tape over the hole (works reasonably well, when it sticks tight) as well as sealing it with a drop of Elmer's glue (more reliable). But--both methods are time consuming, and the quality of the fruit seems to decline quite a bit once the hole is sealed. But, speaking of blessings, it's been a blessing in disguise, because the escalating beetle damage prompted me to google "closed-eye figs", which is how I discovered the forum and got recommendations for better choices. Now I've got several little closed-eye varieties in the ground and will yank the BT as soon as the replacements are producing (or much sooner, if I can't get any good figs off the BT).

Ken,

Could you use some material from the sewing stores, like tuille--not sure of the name--some kind of netting that those stores sell?  It would be tougher than mosquito netting, I think.  It has tiny openings in it and I don't think those beetles could get through it, nor could birds peck through it.  Wrap the whole tree.  You might need to have someone sew pieces together.  Some work, but if you want good figs---  :)

What kind of BT is your tree?

noss

Noss, I bought it from a local nursery under the name "Improved Brown Turkey." I'm not sure what that "Improved" means--whether it's a distinct variety apart from other Brown Turkeys, or what. It's been a very nice tree, until the beetles discovered it--vigorous, productive, tasty, and with good-sized figs. I'd recommend it to anybody who can grow open-eyed figs successfully.


My daughter sewed the sleeves I mentioned earlier from some old sheer curtain material. At first I thought it would be a good solution, but the birds were too much for it. I think they're probably too much for any fabric--it's the woodpeckers that cause the damage. I figure if they can peck holes in trees, they can get through most anything else (unless somebody comes up with a Kevlar mosquito net)! Anyway, I think the closed-eye approach will work in the long run, but I'll have to be patient for another year or two.

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