Avoid Bird Damage - Pick Fruit Early

Q. I had a lot of bird damage in my apricots this year.

Stark Saturn donut peach and bird damage. The birds love this fruit. It develops very high sugar content in the desert.

A. The bird damage should be easy to correct if you harvest the fruit when it is still hard but has some color development. Keep an eye on the fruit and look for early bird damage. If the fruit has begun to change color, you can harvest when they are hard.

Early producing apricots are less hard hit than the later ones.

            Apricots develop the same sugar content as when it is left on the tree. Remember that sugar content does not equal flavor. Flavor is much more complex than just sugar content. It has a lot to do with the mixture of different chemicals inside the fruit such as the organic acids, flavonoids, etc.