field was beside a cranberry field, and no larvae damage was seen in the fruit. In cranberries, 30 percent of the


fields monitored had moths or larvae present, or had sustained crop damage. “It seems to be limited to South Richmond and Delta right now and other areas of Fraser Valley are not experiencing any damage,” says Hueppelsheuser. “It is fairly regionally isolated at this point, but I wouldn’t expect that it’s going to stay that way necessarily.” The female cranberry fruitworm


moth lays its eggs on green fruit in the early stages of development. The larvae hatch and burrow into the berry, and feed on the pulp until the contents are almost entirely consumed. As larvae grow, they move from


berry to berry within a cluster, leaving behind a trail of frass and silk. Samples collected from on farms with moth activity in 2013 showed fruit damage ranging from zero to eight percent of the crop. According to Hueppelsheuser, B.C.’s cool spring seasons may be


Once the first moths are found,


plan to spray within seven days. There are a number of registered insecticides targeting the egg stage of the fruitworm that will be effective. Check with your packer for product recommendations. “Timing and coverage are the


part of what is protecting blueberries. “I think it’s because cranberries


bloom later than blueberries in our climate, so they are at more suitable stage when the moths are ready to lay eggs than the blueberries. Blueberries are nearly ready to harvest, while cranberries have the nice green fruit that the fruitworm is looking for.” The good news is that growers in


B.C. have effective monitoring and control tools available to manage cranberry fruitworm. Monitoring should start in early June using appropriate pheromone lures with wing traps. Using one trap per field, place it near the edge of the field. Check traps weekly and record positive moth catches. Lures should be replaced every four weeks.


most important parts of controlling this,” says Hueppelsheuser. “Growers have


to time their treatments to get insecticide applied at the egg or really early larva stage. It’s critical to control larva before they get into the fruit.”


Growers can expect more detailed information to emerge as monitoring continues over the next two years. “Over the medium and long term


there’s a good possibility that the range of this pest will expand in Fraser Valley region,” Hueppel- sheuser warns. “In the two years we’ve been monitoring we have yet to see a change, but it’s too soon to assume that it’s not going to. What we know now is that it’s not going to spread like SWD.”


British Columbia Berry Grower • Spring 2014 13


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