News from Ironwood has been scarce this spring. Farmers are frustrated with continual rain and everyone is frustrated with the unusually cold weather. However, summer is finally here and the apples have blossomed. Some bees managed to find the apple blossoms despite the continual rainy spells.
Now that the blossoms have fallen, Ironwood County organic apple growers have put out the codling moth traps. It's an old Minnesota recipe that puts a banana peel, a cut of sugar, and a cup of apple cider vinegar in the plastic milk jug that is then filled the rest of the way with water. The experts hang one per tree and keep it there for a few weeks. They try to keep the hole large enough to attract the moths but small to keep butterflies from entering the trap as well.
After that they start putting apple footies on the apples to prevent apple maggots from destroying the crop. They say the maggots start appearing around July 1, so there isn't a big rush. Once the footies are on, they take the coddling moth traps down. By then the moths have quit laying eggs (for the most part) and the apples will be good until harvest.
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