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Life Cycle
In New Jersey, plum curculio completes a single generation a year in blueberries. This insect overwinters as an adult in leaf litter. Adults become active during bloom and feed on young fruit just after bloom, causing feeding scars. We have noticed that in the absence of fruit, adults feed on blueberry flowers (petals). Females lay eggs in the fruit causing crescent-shaped oviposition scars (see Picture 1). White maggot-like larvae develop inside the fruit (one larva per fruit). Feeding by the larvae causes fruit to develop prematurely and fall off the bush. Mature larvae exit the fruit to pupate in the ground, and become an adult in July and August. If berries are picked before they drop, larvae can contaminate harvested fruit.
Scouting and Control
To monitor plum curculio populations, scout for the semi-circular scars on the fruit. Sampling should be biased towards field edges or infields that border woods and hedgerows. Plum curculio infestations are more common in weedy fields and those with sod middles. This pest is more of a problem on early maturing varieties. No threshold has been established, so treatment is mainly based on past history and an estimate of damage to fruit. Control methods target the immature and adult stages. Rimon can be used before bloom to prevent fruit infestation. Rimon affects female oviposition behavior and egg and larval development. Chemical controls targeting the adults should be applied soon after bees are removed. Post-bloom control options include Avaunt, Danitol, Brigade, Mustang Max, and Imidan.