Apple sawfly management in organic orchards using sticky tape

The apple sawfly (Hoplocampa testudinea) is a key pest in organic fruit production, laying eggs in flower bases and damaging developing fruitlets. White sticky tape is used for monitoring and control, deployed before bloom using phenological models like Rimpro or Fruitweb. Recommended at 150–250 tapes per hectare, tapes are fixed between trellis wires at 1–2 m spacing, requiring one person for upper wires and two for lower wires to process two rows simultaneously. Tapes must not be obstructed by branches and should be removed after flowering to prevent bycatching bees and natural enemies. Monitoring involves checking for egg-laying punctures, with a threshold of 1–4 per 100 flower clusters. Control includes manual removal of infested fruits and, if needed, Quassia or NeemAzal-T/S applications at bloom or petal fall, with local permission verification advised. Costs range from €255 to €502 per hectare, including tape (€0.50/m), labour (10–14 hours at €18/hour), and variable tape length. The method is part of the BIOFRUITNET project and available on the Organic Farm Knowledge platform.