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I know each of you get survey fatigue, and I do as well. I promise this one is really, really short though. Shane Breeden, working with Cain Hickey and I, is developing a research program to study current and potential hybrid grapes for utility in Georgia and the Southeast as a whole. As a starting…
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Wasps, hornets, and even bees are opportunistic feeders, and during the mid to late summer they are actively searching for sources of sugars. Once they find sources of sugary foods, they will aggressively forage in those areas and recruit additional workers from the colony. As such, these stinging insects can be a real nuisance in…
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Hello everyone, I don’t want to cause any unwarranted panic, but there has been a report of a substantial mite infestation in a vineyard block in North Georgia. Nothing a little miticide can’t handle, but I wanted to remind everyone was aware that mites can be a problem, especially as the weather continues to heat…
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We collected our first grape root borer adults today in one of our pheromone traps in White County, Georgia. This means that the adults have started to emerge from the soil out of their pupal stage. For the next few weeks the adults will emerge, mate, and the females will lay their eggs at the…
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We are within a few weeks of the anticipated initial emergence of grape root borer (GRB) adults here in Georgia. If you are planning on implementing mating disruption as a management tactic for GRB and you haven’t deployed your pheromone dispensers/ties, now is the time to get those distributed. If you are unfamiliar with grape…
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The time is upon us once again. Japanese beetles are showing up in vineyards around the state. They are only just beginning to emerge, so their numbers will increase dramatically over the next few weeks. In large enough numbers, Japanese beetles can be a severe pest of grapes during the summer, feeding mainly on foliage…
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We have had pretty dry weather recently, but the rainfall of late and predictions for more storms next week will increase the likelihood of downy mildew onset — as well as other fungal diseases of wine grapes. We are still within a critical stage for cluster infections by downy mildew and other diseases. Scout aggressively…
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I have not personally observed this yet, but county agents and producers are now starting to observe limited downy mildew. Though it has been drier of late, dew is sufficient for infection, and we have had some rains over the last few weeks that may have initiated infections. Scout carefully for mildew, and if observed,…
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Thrips are small yellowish-brown insects, approximately 0.04 inch long, with feathery wings. Thrips are generally not a problem for wine grapes, but both western flower thrips and grape thrips are known to cause damage on grapes. Western flower thrips are nearly ubiquitous in the environment,…
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Bloom and post-bloom are critical times for disease management in grapes. Temperatures and rainfall are generally favorable for pathogen development at this time, though conditions are not as wet as those observed last year. This is particularly true for grapes that are susceptible to powdery/downy mildews and Botrytis. The fruit are generally more susceptible to…
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