There are different varieties of pests that can spoil a grapevine. Insects, birds, deer can spoil the grapevines and plant diseases can infect them. Mildew, Black rot, Phomopsis cane, leaf spot and fungus are the most common diseases that infect grapevines. The grapevines exhibit many symptoms that are visible and signal the onset of a disease. The leaves of the grapevine become discolored, lesions or a film begin to color the leaves or the fruits start to decay. A fungicide should be used to fight the disease that has infected the grapevine. But the owner of the grapevine should look into the problem carefully before he figures out the solution.
There are also a wide variety of insects that would love to spoil the grapevines. The most common ones are the grape berry moths that lay their eggs on top of the grapes. Once the eggs hatch, the young ones will create holes in the fruits along with webs, which will signal a problem in the grapevine to its owner. Grape leaf hoppers will target the lower part of the leaves. But only large numbers of these insects can damage the grapevine. The Japanese beetle mainly infects grapes that grow in the United States of America. They drastically reduce the amount of the grapes that the grapevine can produce. Rose chafers are a variety of beetle that directly infects the grapes in the vine. The grapevines are string enough to tolerate small to medium level of attack from insects. The insects that attack grapes cane be controlled using insecticides.
Birds also attack grapevines. The extent of damage that be caused to the grapevines by birds can be large. But it is easier to scare birds that come in a group than scare a single one bird, which attacks the grapevines. The grapevines can be covered using a net in order to protect them from birds. The net can be used to cover the grapevines for a period of thirty months. But the net cover should be removed before the winter begins otherwise ice will start to form on top of the net and this can also damage the grapevine. It is also useful to use a net as a cover since grapevines grow on trellises and they can be protected easily. Some visual objects are also used to scare the birds easy and these can be erected easily. There are certain cannons, which can be bought from the market. The timer on these cannons can be set in such a way that a loud exploding sound is emitted at regular intervals. This loud sound will help to scare away the birds. But if the grapevines are being grown in the backyard, then the sound of the cannons will become a nuisance to the neighbors. These visual objects can be plates of aluminum or even artificial birds like hawks, owls and snakes.
Deer also contribute towards damaging a grapevine especially during the spring season when the shoots start appearing and the food available for deer is little. Different types of smell can be used to drive away the deer from the grapevines. The smell of human hair or soap can be used by people growing grapes to drive away deer from their grapevines. The smell of coyotes can also be used to drive away the deer from a grapevine. Since growing grapes requires a lot of time and effort, it is also important to protect them from pests and animals.
Didier LeScraigne is a grape growing expert and experienced wine maker. For more great tips on how to grow grapes and make wine visit http://www.growinggrapesandwinemaking.com
No comments:
Post a Comment