The golden flavescence of the vine is transmitted by the grape berry beetle, or American leafhopper, known in Hungary since 2006.
A golden flavescence of the vine It is one of the most worrying diseases in vineyards. It is one of several grapevine diseases.
The magazine details: this disease causes crop losses, in quantity and quality, and often leads to death of the vines affected. The vine is the main host of the phytoplasma that causes golden flavescence.
The golden flavescence of the vine is causing a lot of concern in Hungary. You are decimate the vineyards Hungarians – who became a kind of yellow sea, instead of having green leaves.
Winemaker Tamás Hernyák explains in: “Plant leaves begin to turn yellow long before harvest. The edges of the leaves become curled and, as they do not fully develop, they remain smaller than healthy leaves.”
And the sprouts they must be monitored: “They are normally rubbery in spring and summer, they bend easily and do not break”.
From 2013 that the disease was identified in the grape and wine industry – but apparently no effective measures has been applied over these 12 years.
Now the golden flavescence of the vine has already been confirmed in 15 of Hungary’s 22 wine regions.
The disease seemed dormant; but now settled in the vineyards – which have been weakened by global warming.
For now, it is only possible to do the pruning diseased vines.
In the Etyek-Buda wine region, grapes susceptible to the disease are mainly Chardonnay. There are grape varieties (Merlot, for example) that attract cicadas more; but they have few, if any, signs of “golden yellow”.
The most important thing, adds Tamás, is control the insect that is spreading the disease.
