Australian grapegrowers can now better manage the disease eutypa dieback with new research identifying a pruning wound treatment that saves time and money and new fungicide sprays.
 
The new and improved tools in the eutypa defence-kit are part of a recently completed three-year research project, titled Optimising management of eutypa dieback, undertaken by the South Australian Research and Development Institute (SARDI) and funded by the GWRDC.
 
SARDI research scientist and project leader Dr Mark Sosnowski said the new method would be significantly cheaper and faster than  applying pruning wound treatments by hand and, in many cases, would assist growers to better manage the disease.
 
To date, the most effective and common industry control method is painting pruning wounds by hand, with just two pruning wound treatments registered in Australia for the control of eutypa dieback: Greenseal, a paint containing tebuconazole fungicide, and Vinevax, a trichoderma-based biological control.