Fungus (?) on a Pear Tree

[Iona's Orchard]

I was tickled pink to discover blossoms on my pear and peach trees (1 peach, 3 pear). BUT, only two pear trees have flowers- tree #3 appears to have some kind of fungus.
Is it a fungus? Will it spread? Can I fix it, or should the tree be cut down?

Thanks in advance!

(oops! The first 2 pictures are sideways..not that it really matters)

 

[lesa]

I have no idea what that is... if it were on my tree, I would trim that branch and destroy it. Just in case. It may be nothing, but why take the chance? It is only on that one spot?

 

[Iona's Orchard]

Each picture is a different branch.

 

[journey11]

I believe you have wooly aphids sucking on the sap. I notice that they are all on a damaged/calloused spot and probably caused the damage themselves. They particularly like pear trees. Click the image to read more and how to treat them...

 

[Iona's Orchard]

Thank you! Great article, and it explains a lot. I'd wondered if the 'fungus' had been due to damage from aphids, but hadn't thought it was aphids. Good thing we have an abundance of Ladybugs!

 

[journey11]

You can use a soap water spray (with a touch of cooking oil in it) as an organic means of smothering them to death. Let me see if I can find the recipe...

Here's one version... 3 tbsp liquid dish detergent to one gallon of water. There was another on here that I've used that had I think 1 tbsp of veggie oil in there too.

 

[catjac1975]

I thought they looked like mealybugs. I only get them on indoor plants around here.

 

[lesa]

Ah! It is so cold here, my mind is not going to bugs...I had quite an aphid problem on my plum tree. I just went out with a spray bottle of water- and kind of sprayed while squishing. They particularly liked the underside of the leaves. So, I carefully sprayed and squished all that I could reach. That is a much easier problem to solve, certainly no reason to cut off branches. Sorry for my bad advice!

 

[Smart Red]

That is the main reason for an early spring spraying of dormant oil in the orchard. It will smother any insect eggs, scale, and such that overwintered on the bark. It must be done before the buds swell up and open.

 

[Iona's Orchard]

I'm happy to say the pear tree has made a come back. I scrubbed the aphids off with soap and water and there was 4 aphid-free days in which the tree put out its struggling leaves. A random cold snap last night killed off most of the returning aphids, but I'm watching the tree for more. The Insta-Skin appears to have done no harm were I used it, so I'll use it on all the limbs (with caution, just in case).
We've had a great few days of alternating rain and sun, so all the trees are popping like crazy. Love it!