Pear tree pest

Hi,

I have a relatively new pear tree, this is its second year with us. I was so pleased to see loads of blossom earlier. However today I noticed black marks, withering small fruit so assume it has a bug

If anyone can help identify from the pictures I would be grateful.

KR
Nick

 

Hello Nick, welcome to GC. If the fruitlets are turning black and dropping off, it's pear midge. If the leaves are red and blistered, then blackening, it's pear leaf blister mite. In either case, for a small tree, the best remedy is to collect up all the affected fruits and/or leaves and dispose of them in a sealed bag. If you need to remove a lot of leaves, give the tree a feed of balanced (NPK roughly equal) fertiliser and a good soak if the soil's dry. Persistence does pay off with both of these pests, but of the two, the pear midge is by far the worst. Each fruitlet contains a grub that will go on to produce even more pests the following year, so you need to collect them all