Marianne's Response

blueberries

I have a new blueberry bush.. Last year was the first time it produced quite a bit of fruit.. I was excited to have more fruit again this year. After picking a bowl of fruit, I left the bowl sitting on the counter for about an hour. When I returned to clean and rinse the berries , some tiny white worms about half inch long with a black head were climbing around in the bowl
I googled this and it appears to be from a fly laying eggs on them.. I was grossed out and threw them away.. not knowing if they were inside the berries or just on the outside.
What can I do next season to insure this does not happen again ? What is safe to put on the plant that is going to be edible? When does this application also need to be done?

Posted by Cheryl Nikolao on July 3, 2019

Marianne's Response

So sorry it freaked you out - I agree it is not appetizing. To keep your berries clean of insects you should cover the shrub with fine netting or tulle once the berries start to form. This also keeps the birds out. You can also use Remay or agricultural fleece to keep the flys from landing on the fruit and laying eggs.   I have never heard of any ill effects from eating berries with the  larvae but I agree in our culture we do not eat insects. Keep growing, Marianne Binetti

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