Fruit tree grease bands are a pesticide-free way of keeping winter moth caterpillars away from your pear and apple trees in the spring. You use fruit tree grease for insect control. The “bracelets” of grease on the trunk create an impassable barrier that stops the wingless females from climbing up the tree trunks to lay their eggs. If you want to know how to apply fruit tree grease bands or the ins and outs of using gel bands, read on.
Fruit Tree Grease for Insect Control
Insects use fruit trees as a place to lay their eggs as well as get some lunch. They can damage your precious fruit trees in the process. Applying fruit tree grease or fruit tree grease bands is one way to stop this kind of insect damage without spraying pesticides in the garden. It is easy and the produce contains no pesticides.
You can buy fruit tree grease bands, also known as gel bands, in your garden store. Using gel bands is not difficult. You don’t need any special skill to wrap them around the trunks of your fruit trees. Simply place them around the trunk about 18 inches above the ground.
If the bark of the tree is not smooth, grease bands might not work well, since the bugs can crawl under the bands through the fissures and continue creeping up the trunk. In that case, think about applying fruit tree grease to the trunk.
If you are wondering how to apply fruit tree grease, slather it on in a ring around the trunk about 18 inches above the soil. A ring of grease stops bugs in their tracks.
Now you know how to apply fruit tree grease to your tree. You also have to learn about appropriate timing. You’ll want to start applying fruit tree grease at the end of October. The moths that want to lay eggs in the fruit trees typically arrive in November before the coldest weather hits. You want the protective bands in place before they get to the garden.