Vineyard Fruit Fly Alert

Vineyard Fruit Fly Alert

Vineyard Fruit Fly Alert. I’m Greg Martin with today’s Fruit Grower Report.

 

With the recent rains and warm weather wine-grape growers need to be on the lookout for the Spotted Wing Drosophila fruit fly. Vaughn Walton, entomologist with Oregon State University recently sent out an alert.

 

WALTON: We’ve had the nice warm weather. We’ve had the rain and then the warm weather after that and you have more activity - insect activity in this warm weather so people see it a lot easier and some people smell the acetic acid.

 

Walton says some growers seem to be really affected while others, not so much.

 

WALTON: Growers are harvesting now and I think that they’re going to be in good shape in general. I don’t think it’s anything new. I think what’s happened because of Spotted Wing Drosophila that’s come in a few years ago now our interest is renewed and we suddenly start paying attention to it.

 

He says one of the easy ways to combat the issue during harvest is to not pick the affected grape clusters.

 

WALTON: What we’ve done from the research side is determine is this actually affecting the quality of the grapes and so we’re still looking into that. And of courser it’s a concern to the industry but we’re not 100% sure if it is - to which extent it is affected.

 

If growers are concerned over the SWD then Walton suggested using registered compounds for the drosophila in vineyards.

 

That’s today’s Fruit Grower Report. I’m Greg Martin on the Ag Information Network.

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