Pests can be troublesome in the vineyard and now another one has been found in mainland Europe. Already in 2016, vines infected by the bacterium Xylella fastidiosa were discovered in Mallorca.
Now it has shown up in Portugal.
The bacteria is spread by insects (leafhoppers) and once the vine is infected there is no cure. The vine normally dies within one to five years. Xylella fastidiosa causes a disease called Pierce’s Disease and it has for many years been a bother in the United States’ vineyards.
The only thing that can be done is to immediately destroy infected vines and try to ensure that the insects that spread the bacteria are kept from the vineyard by spraying with an insecticide.
Read more: wein-plus
