The beetles overwinter as adults under debris in the woods or field margins and migrate into the fields at about petal fall. Plum curculio usually is more prevalent on plants adjacent to woods, fence rows, and trashy fields.
Females lay eggs in shallow pits excavated on the surface of green berries.
Usually a single egg is laid in each berry, and a crescent-shaped scar develops on the surface at this site. Upon hatching, larvae burrow into the fruit where they feed on the pulp for about 2 weeks, many times causing the fruit to drop. Infested berries sometimes remain on the plant, however, and can contaminate harvested flats. Fully grown larvae leave the fruit, burrow into the soil, and pupate within an earthen chamber. The adults emerge about 4 weeks later.