The heavy rain this summer caused scab in apples. The fruits are of a poor quality and even fewer in number than last year. The information was communicated for IPN by Petru Stratan, apple producer and executive director of the Association of Fruit Producers and Exporters “Moldova-Fruct”.

According to Petru Stratan, the orchards are affected by several diseases, but scab is most often met in apples. “Scab is a fungus that appears on plants and fruit like spots. The disease affects the green parts. It didn’t struck when the trees were in blossom as the period then was drier. Afterward, when the weeds were high, the producers couldn’t intervene to combat it,” he stated.

The director of “Moldova-Fruct” said the apple harvest this year will be smaller than last year. Thus, there will be exported fewer fruits and the price may be higher.

Moldova produces 250,000 – 300,000 tonnes of apples annually. The largest volume of apples is exported to Russia.