Spots on Apples - Ask Extension
Hi. I've looked through some common problems with apple trees and I'm not finding something that matches this well, so I'm not sure what it is. It is ...
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Spots on Apples #651735
Asked June 16, 2020, 1:16 PM EDT
Hi. I've looked through some common problems with apple trees and I'm not finding something that matches this well, so I'm not sure what it is. It is all over the apples on some of our trees. It almost looks as if someone took their fingernail and scraped at it. Rounded on one edge, and pushed up a little on the other side. I cut into the apples, and didn't notice anything weird in one of thme. Seemed to be on the surface only. The other one had some brown spots near where the bad part was on the outside. Hoping to figure out what it is, so we can stop it from getting to apples that aren't effected yet. Also want to know if it will effect the apples being able to be eaten.
Washington County Minnesota
Expert Response
This sounds a bit bizarre, but did you happen to have any hail when the apples were forming?
There is a chance. I know we had a brief bout of hail a few weeks ago, but I don’t recall timing. The weird thing is that this is covering most of the apples on some trees and not a single one on some others.
That it affects some and not others is not surprising. Hail damage can be variable because of wind and leaf cover. The spots do like like a wound. Hail, damage is cosmetic. The dimple is a little large for Apple maggot. Apple maggot does cause corky spots.
If it is hail damage, we wouldn’t see further damage (unless of course there is more hail...), so that is good. Will the hail damage ruin the apples for good? Will we still be able to harvest/eat/cook with an apple that had hail damage? One of our favorite trees has very few apples without these spots all over. It is sad.
You are right Some leaves should have been shredded. You will know in a few weeks if it is an insect pest because there will be brown streaks inside the apples. Hail damage is mostly cosmetic. If they don’t rot they will be fine for cooking or eating raw. As the apples grow it should be easier to identify the probable cause of the damage.
I recommend bagging apples next year.
