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The western cherry fruit fly can’t lay eggs in the fruit until the fruit begins to soften. A salmon-colored blush on the cherries is a reliable sign that the fruit is softening and needs protection to prevent wormy cherries.

Courtesy USU Extension

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Garlic scapes are edible and delicious. Harvest them while they are young (also the best choice for bigger garlic cloves) and use them in omelets, stir fries and other dishes.

Courtesy Meredith Seaver, USU Extension

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Garlic scapes begin to appear in very late spring. It can be interesting to watch them develop, but you’ll get larger heads of garlic if you remove the scapes sooner rather than later so the plants can direct all their energy to the garlic cloves.

Courtesy Meredith Seaver, USU Extension

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Sweet cherry season will be here in just a few weeks. Here is some information about preventing wormy cherries in your crop. The western cherry fruit fly (WCFF), the primary cherry pest in Utah, is the culprit to blame when you find little worms in your cherries. Female fruit flies lay their eggs under the skin of the cherries and the larvae feed on the ripening flesh of the fruit. There isn’t a specific date for doing the first cherry spray in Utah, but there is an easy way to tell when you should do it for your own tree: keep an eye on the color of your fruit.

Cherries are too firm for a female WCFF to insert an egg into the fruit until the cherries first start to change color. Check your tree frequently, looking for cherries that are lighter green with a subtle salmon-colored blush. This should happen first on the upper and sunny side of your tree. Once you see this color change on the first cherries, you should do your first spray application. Don’t wait for the rest of your cherries to begin changing color.

There are several effective insecticides, both conventional and organic, that can be used to protect your cherries. No matter what product you use, read the label before you purchase, read it again before you mix and apply it and then read the label again before you decide where you’ll store any unused insecticide until it’s time to sprayed again. Repeat the spraying at the interval recommended on your product. The product label will also tell you how many days before harvest you will need to stop spraying.

There are a few other things you can do to reduce problems with wormy cherries.

First, don’t leave any cherries on the tree at the end of the harvest. Adult flies will still be active after harvest and cherries that are left on the tree could become infested, adding to next year’s generation of flies.

Second, you can keep the soil under the tree covered with mulch, weed mat or something similar to make it more difficult for the larvae that drop from the cherries to burrow into the soil and pupate during the winter.

Third, keep the area under your tree clean. Frequently clean up cherries that have fallen from the tree. Don’t leave any dropped fruit on the ground.

What should I do about the curly stems that grow from the middle of my garlic plants?

Those curly stems are called garlic scapes, and they’re delicious.

Garlic scapes are the inflorescence — the flower stalk — of the hard-necked garlic plant. They begin to emerge in mid- to late spring, and as they grow, they will twist, curl or loop. A flower cluster and small bulblets will develop on the end of the scapes if you leave them alone. If you cut them off while the scapes are young, you’ll have tender scapes for soups, salads, omelets and sautés plus bigger garlic heads to harvest sometime in late June.

If you want to eat your garlic scapes, don’t leave them on your plants for more than a few days because they get woody and lose their flavor as they mature. To harvest the scapes, use a pair of scissors to cut them off as far down as you can without cutting off a leaf. Pop the cut ends of the scapes into a jar of water or tuck them into a plastic bag and refrigerate them until you’re ready to use them.

Your garlic plants don’t need any special care after you harvest the scapes. Keep up the deep, infrequent watering until you see the tops begin to yellow and dry out. Once you see the tops start to yellow, it’s time to reduce and then stop watering the plants and begin harvesting. Put your plants in an area with good air circulation and protection from direct sun and rain or sprinkler water to let the plants dry completely before removing the leaves and roots. Store the heads of garlic in a cool, dry location.