Loquat Fire Blight: Symptoms, Cycle, and Management

Loquat blossoms turning brown—owner asks what fire blight looks like and how to treat. Expert provides full UC IPM description: bacterial disease (Erwinia amylovora) on pome fruits. Symptoms: tan ooze from cankers turning dark; blossoms wilt, turn black/brown; shoots form “shepherd’s crook”; dead leaves/fruit cling, giving scorched look. Bacteria overwinter in cankers; spread by rain, insects (bees). Favors 75–85°F with humidity. Management: avoid excess N and heavy pruning; don’t irrigate during bloom; monitor and prune out infections 8–12" below visible damage; disinfect tools (10% bleach); weak copper sprays at bloom (0.5% Bordeaux) reduce new infections but don’t cure wood.

Critical Timing

• Prune in dry weather, disinfect between cuts.
• Copper sprays only during bloom period.
• Remove root suckers (water sprouts).

Vigorous growth worsens fire blight; moderate fertility helps.