Gummosis On Stone Fruit

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31753, 9 August 1968, Page 6

Gummosis On Stone Fruit

Stone fruit trees often display considerable exudations of gum, a symptom referred to ss gummosis. The cause may be one of' several diseases, or a combination of two or more such as die-back, coral spot, brown rot, or peach scab. It can arise as a result of injury abrasions, or for instance where cherries are pruned at the wrong time of th® year. What happens'is that the woody tissues break down into gum. The wood call cavities swell, pockets are formed which fill with gum, which causes a rupture, and the gum oozes out Where attack is slight there is little effect to the plant’s wellbeing, but death of the branch and possibly the tree could follow if exudations of gum are copious. A noticeable feature is the smaller and fewer leaves present and the little growth made under

such circumstances. Correct and timely applications of sprays for the control Of diseases mentioned, the removal of affected wood, pruning of crossing branches and avoidance of damage tb the root system can help to reduce incidence Of gummosis.