Fire Blight Attacks!
Fire blight has attacked the farm! Not an all out sudden blitz attack, more like a sneaky guerrilla attack where the enemy nicks an artery and you don't know you are bleeding out until it is too late.
For those not up to date on their tree diseases (and I'm certainly not an expert), fire blight is a bacterial disease that attacks multiple types of fruit trees including pears and apples. Our pear tree got ambushed.
I noticed a a couple dead limbs back during the winter, but did not think much about it assuming they just died. We had been busy the first 1.5 years since moving in remodeling the house and rebuilding the chicken coop, so I had not paid much attention to the pear tree in the front yard. Big mistake.
Once spring arrived, the tree was covered in blooms! I mean COVERED! I couldn't wait to be chomping on fresh pears later in the summer. However, the siege was on and before I knew it the blight had killed the majority of the blooms and was slowly creeping up the limbs. Drastic measures were needed.
The first step to fighting fire blight is to go on the ATTACK! All affected wood needs to be removed from the tree. Our tree was eat up with it, so despite the heat of summer building, extreme surgery was needed to have a chance at saving the tree.
Watch the video below to see the before and after. There are treatments that can be sprayed on affected trees. Check out www.dirtdoctor.com and search for "fire blight" for more info. The basics are spray with a solution of Garrett Juice (link to Amazon below) and hydrogen peroxide.
I have some Garret Juice on the way and will provide an update video in a few weeks. Hopefully we have broken the siege and turned the tide of war!
Find your Garret Juice here and as always, thanks for shopping through our affiliate links!