Q: We have a cherry plum tree with purple foliage, pink flowers in April and small reddish fruit in July. The leaves look like something is eating at them. There are small holes all over them. I looked for bugs but didn’t find any. Can you please let me know what this could be and how to treat it?
A: Plums and other tree fruits with pits get a fungus disease that causes lots of holes in the leaves and ruins the fruit. It is called shot hole disease because the trees look like they have been blasted with a shotgun. You should first look for a fungicide that says it will treat this disease, but you might have to settle for a general-purpose fungicide. Spray the tree after the leaves fall off in the fall because the disease overwinters on the stems and branches. In the spring, spray a week after the flower petals fall off to get better quality fruit.
