Dampness to Start Off this Week which if we are growing disease sensitive trees such as virtually all apricots, the 1-2 inches over the 50+ hour period matters. 

The last major storms that had replenished ground water around two weeks ago could have started our regular season of disease too because humidity stayed high for almost a week long. Those least fortunate in the surrounding hills that will want to grow apricots or many other sensitive cultivars of plum will even be more under pressure than here. 

So here at home, with this picture from today as evidence, which clearly is showing up as tip damage of my citation root sprout. At first I thought it was aphid damage, but when uncurling the leafy growth I found dried sap, this as again shown (emanating) from the trunk section above the graft on the japanese plum 'emerald beaut' side. 

'Citation' (plum x peach) rootstocks are locally quite tolerant of disease if not resistant. I had several bought over 20 years ago as discounted/ungrafted per Raintree nursery which I could grow tall and still graft to beach plum for a while until the graft was not compatible. But the 'citation' hybrids still survived so this pictured shoot will survive, but the emissions from above as they become airborne become lethal targets to apricots. 

Just putting this out there as a possible strategy of covering up sensitive crops and especially now for those that scionwood must be collected from for later when the time is right for picking that they won't be lost to disease at that time.