June Fruit Drop

If you have fruit trees that have fruit, you may have noticed green fruit littering the ground under the trees. This is normal and is called June fruit drop (because it generally happens in early June!). Fruit trees have a natural tendency to shed some of their immature fruits. Fruit trees often set more flowers than they need for a full crop, to offset sudden loses from weather or other cultural factors. According to Perdue University Consumer Horticulture, "Only one bloom in 20 is needed for a good crop on a full-blossoming apple tree.

The reason fruit trees set fruit is so they can produce seed. If the crop is too large, it will strain the tree's resources and result in smaller fruits, possible of lesser quality. So the tree protects itself and its seed by thinning the crop, once it senses weather and growing conditions are stable. The immature fruits are all competing for the same food and water, and the strongest will survive. Fruits that contain the fewest or weakest seeds are the first to drop.

My peach, tangerine, almond and orange trees (the only ones fruiting at this time) have all dropped a few green fruits. Make sure to clean them up in case they are harboring bugs or diseases.