Wine bug threat

By Kath Gannaway
YARRA Valley winegrowers were feeling cautiously optimistic over the weekend as the Department of Primary Industries continued to monitor vineyards in the Coldstream-Yering region for phylloxera.
News last week of the presence of the grape vine aphid in a Foster’s-owned vineyard in St Huberts Road, Coldstream, presented local growers, many already beleaguered with the impact of frost and drought with their first taste of a new threat.
The grape phylloxera, an aphid which feeds on the sap of vine roots, causes a decline in vine vigour.
The outbreak in the 38-hectare Beavis vineyard is the only recorded instance of phylloxera in the Yarra Valley since vines were first planted in the region in 1838.
A spokesman for Foster’s told the Mail the outbreak was detected by routine aerial monitoring.
Tests were taken, he said, on the Friday, 1 December and again on Monday morning.
“We take this very seriously and we took immediate action,” he said.
“Our priority now is to work with the DPI to determine the extent of the outbreak and where it might have come from.”
Michael Matthews, Yarra Valley Wine Growers’ Association (YVWGA) president, said the industry was fortunate the infestation had been found early and that strict quarantine restrictions were quickly put in place.
Although the news came as a shock in an area which proudly proclaims itself to be phylloxera free, when the Mail spoke with Mr Matthews late last week he was feeling optimistic.
“The DPI has checked all the Foster’s-owned vineyards and they are clean. That’s good news,” he said.
“Foster’s have also given a commitment that they will pull out the entire vineyard, burn the vines and eradicate it.”
Mr Matthews said while it was unknown exactly how the phylloxera bug got to the valley, it had been identified as a strain which is known to come from Nagambie.
“There is a fair degree of interaction between known phylloxera regions in other parts of the state and Yarra Valley vineyards. We have people who do pruning and harvesting contractors who move from region to region.”
A spokeswoman for the DPI confirmed preliminary surveys of the Foster’s vineyards had revealed no further infestations and said comprehensive surveys of growers within a five kilometre radius of the affected vineyard would start this week.
“The main thing in our favour is that everyone is working together. We’re all very prepared and we caught it early,” she said.
The YVWGA has called a meeting for members to be held at Swinburne TAFE in Lilydale on Wednesday where Mr Matthews said he expects the results of the DPI survey will be presented.