I bagged my fruit this year for the first time. I started with all the footies that I bought at one of the scion exchanges. Like a lot of people, I had terrible codling moth problems last year. I also put on the paper bags. Then I tried plumfan's idea of using the plastic ziploc sandwich bags and cutting the bottom off. The footies are very easy to put on. I didn't wait until now, because as I was putting them on my asian pears in May, I could see some already had bite holes. I thinned those fruit and threw them away. After I used up all of the footies, I bought some paper lunch bags at Bimart. They were huge for the task so I cut them in half. It was hard to get them to stay on the tree, held by a staple to a tiny apple. I still found them unwieldy, so I used the plastic sandwich sized zipoc bags. I found them to be very convenient.
Here are my initial impressions: plastic bags and footies are very easy to use, so I prefer to put them on in May when the fruit are tiny. You must put them on early in May to prevent codling moth. Paper bags are really a hassle to put on tiny fruit in May. They wouldn't be as hard in June with bigger apples for apple maggot, but I have codling moth, not apple maggot. Plastic bags seem to be reusable according to plumfan. Ted describes footies as not really restretchable, so they may be hard to reuse. For pleasant appearance, footies are the best by far, then paper, then plastic bags. I'm not really trying to keep up with the Joneses, but I live in a homes association neighborhood, and I can get complaints. THe bags don't seem to breathe as well as the footies or paper bags, even with the entire bottom cut out. Putting the footies and plastic bags on aren't really that hard, so if it works, I imagine I will do this every year.
John S
PDX OR
The cheap sandwich zip bags are definitely reusable. Got hundreds of used ones attatched to my apples already. Instead of opting for last years "two clipped corners" for ventilation, I tore the whole bottoms open. This will allow for tons better ventilation. Reason for better ventilation: I think the moisture buildup was responsible for skin discolorations of the dark-blotchy kind. Didn't affect the taste or storability of the apple in any way, but some of the fruit were less attractive.
I think 99% of my apples last fall that were bagged were codling free. And I live in codling central. My neighbor has quite a few apple trees that serve as codling incubators. I try to get the apples thinned out and bagged before June starts.
They need to make these bags in a dark green color for John, so his neighborhood will quite persecuting him! I have thought one could dye some Remay type row cover Ritz-green, then cut and sew it into reusable bags.
I wonder if I can get a third season out of these zip bags?!
Last year was my first for ziplocks with the corners cut off.
I got a lot of earwig damage as well as cracking followed by rot. This was all on my Honeycrisp.
I'm trying the footies again that I have left over from 2007. This time I'll try to tie it on to the stem instead of leaving it more loose.
I saw a picture somewhere of baggies freshly installed, but I can't think of where to find it now. It is kind of a pain to tie them, but maybe I'm not doing it the easiest way.
Jafarj said,
"I saw a picture somewhere of baggies freshly installed, but I can't think of where to find it now. It is kind of a pain to tie them, but maybe I'm not doing it the easiest way. "
Just zipping them like Plumfan said works really well so far. They don't seem to fall off.
John S
PDX OR
Report from Wisconsin.
In 2009, I footied 288 apples. I can say already all 100% of the footied apples have insect damage, the bugs bite right through the footie, the footies are securely on. I had no problem with footies falling off. The 32 apples that have fallen off (with the footies still on) so far were caused by broken stems, not footie fault.
I am surprised all of the footies stayed on all the apples so well.
I think it is the apple maggot fly, that big fly with the groovie looking wings; the footied apples have 10-20 small black pinprick size bites all bunched close together. Like I wrote, they nip right through the nylon footies. I haven't seen any moth damage with footies, which is also a big problem in Wisconsin.
With plastic ziplocks (6"x6.75", ordered bulk online) on 165 apples also this year, I have 12 apples fall off due to stem breaks; and so far not a single insect damage with zip locks (compared to 100% insect damage with footies)!!
Ziplocks... I cut a slit from the top edge-center of the bag down-to-and-just-through the zip part, this allows the entire zip surface to close and seal - allowing the stem past the slit --- this top slit makes putting on the bags extremely easy; also I cut the corners of the bags to supposedly allow for moisture to escape.
Footies IMHO in Wisconsin is a total waste of time and money. I was hoping "my condom tree" would of worked.
Super thin lightweight ziplock bags 6" x 6.75" are ideal.
Expect 100% of the bags to remain with the apple.
Expect 10%-25% of the ziplocked bagged apples to fall due to broken stem.
Perhaps the HOS can start selling a product that actually stops all insects. I'd ask for a refund but I guess I'll consider it a donation. 
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I've had great results with zip lock sandwich bags with the corners cut off. I do loose about 20% from stem break or just natural thinning. In past years I've had 90% good fruit in the bags by harvest. Seldom do I have any split or sun scald, but some, maybe the same as without bags?
This year I may have gotten them on late and will have more damaged apples in the bags, just a guess. One tree the golden Del. has lots of drops from codling damage and yet still lots of the apples on the tree still have holes with frass!
I usually do the bagging just after thinning Memorial Day. Last year we bagged 2400 apples in our yard. This year about 1000. It was a down year for a partial biannual bearer.
One year I did one spray before thinning, just at petal fall and that protected all and I had 99% clean apples.
I have found to leave the bag on when picking and store them in the bag helps keep them much longer, less dehydating. I do not keep the bags for another year, they are dirty and not that expensive, compared to the chemicals you would need to use to keep all them good. We have a lot of codling moth pressure.
Idyllwild
simplepress
jafar
Marsha H
Viron
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