Hi, my feijoa fruit had little grubs in them this year...what do I do about that? Thanks.

Hi Bev, it sounds like either codling moth, fruit worm or guava moth larvae. Due to you being in Northland, I suspect it is guava moth. If your fruit have grubs and the inside of the fruit is brown and spoiled, then it is likely guava moth. Guava moth is a recent import from Australia, where it isn't a pest, but in New Zealand it is fast becoming a problem for our orchardists. They do not have a dormant period in their life cycle, when the feijoa season has finished, they move on to citrus, when citrus finish they will find another host, such as a lilly pilly tree. The guava moth lays their eggs on the fruit and the larva burrow into the fruit, due to this, it is hard to use insecticide controls to treat infected plants, prevention is the best method of control. Some suggestions are to cover the feijoa trees with fine mesh netting immediately after flowering (when the petals have fallen) to protect the fruit. Secure with tape to the supporting branch. Remove fallen and rotting fruit, do not leave on the ground to rot as the larvae can overwinter in the soil. Some home gardeners are boiling, freezing or microwaving fallen fruit to kill the caterpillar.  There are pheromone traps available from garden centres for codling moth and guava moth that can be placed in the tree to attract the male and break the lifecycle of the moth. Whatever your chosen method of disposal, do not compost the fallen fruit, burn or throw in the rubbish to prevent the moth spreading. I hope this information is helpful. Lianne, Tui Team.