Hi, my Luisa plum tree leaves have little holes all over them. What do I spray it with. Regards Peter

Hi Peter, it sounds like your tree has what is called Shot Hole, a common fungal disease of stone fruit, it looks like the holes in the leaves are from a shot gun. It is common in spring, especially if it has been a wet winter, followed by a wet spring. The fungal spores overwinter in the leaf nodes and infected buds on the tree, so it is important that in autumn infected leaves, buds and twigs are removed and burnt or placed in the rubbish, not composted. Regular sprays of a copper based fungicide in winter and spring until bud burst. Shot Hole is difficult to control using fungicide sprays, it is spread by water splash – rain or from the hose or overhead irrigation. The best control is cultural practices such as picking up fallen infected leaves from around the tree and either burning or throwing in the rubbish. Make sure your tree is fertilised in spring and again after fruiting has finished using a general purpose fertiliser such as Tui Novatec or General Garden fertiliser. Water the tree in the growing season and apply a mulch around the tree to help conserve soil moisture and keep weeds at bay. If the foliage in your tree is dense, thin it out so as to improve air circulation through the tree and reduce the environment that fungal diseases thrive. Lianne.