If you’ve ever bitten into a homegrown apple only to find a brown, winding tunnel inside, you’ve met the apple maggot.
This small fly lays eggs just under the apple’s skin. Once the larvae hatch, they tunnel through the fruit, turning it into a mushy mess.
The good news? You don’t need chemicals to fight back. With a few simple habits, you can protect your apples and help stop the spread of apple maggot in B.C.
Here are five homeowner-friendly tips that actually work:
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Image source: WSU Extension
1. Pick Up Fallen Fruit Weekly
Apple maggots develop inside fruit left on the ground. If those apples rot, larvae crawl into the soil and return next year.
What to do: Collect fallen apples every week and toss them in the garbage not the compost. Backyard chickens or birds can also help with cleanup.
2. Cover Apples with Bags
Paper, plastic or nylon/poly mesh bags can block flies from laying eggs but you will need to individually bag each apple. The type of bag doesn't seem to matter unless the insects can reach the fruit through the bag.
Try to avoid panty hose or commercial "apple socks", they have mixed results.
What to do: Slip a bag over each apple when it’s about the size of a quarter and leave it until 3 weeks before harvest. Odd-looking? Yes. Effective? Absolutely.
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For detailed instructions on how to bag your apples click here
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3. Use Sticky Traps and Balls
Red sticky spheres and yellow sticky cards help track when flies arrive. Arbutus stocks traps and cards and can even install them for you!
What to do: Place traps in your tree canopy in early summer. If you catch flies, it’s time to ramp up protection with bagging or clay spray.
Tip: For hands-on support with traps or spraying, reach out to us in late April or early May so we can get you set up before peak pest season.
4. Organic Spray with Clay
Kaolin clay forms a natural barrier that deters flies. We can help you with this or you can DIY with self-sourced products.
What to do: Contact us early in the spring (before fruit set), we can set up an Integrated Pest Management (IPM) program for you. This usually involves a monitoring card, traps and a spray with reapplication every 1–2 weeks or after rain. It’s safe for people, pets, and pollinators—and washes off at harvest.
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