Grape phylloxera treatment

General Fruit Growing
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Two years ago I began planting grape vines for fresh eating as well as to make wine.

Unfortunately, I already have a problem with Phylloxera bugs on a good number of my vines.

After a little research I found out that Fronteac which is a wine type grape is highly succeptible to this insect.

And that is exactly what I saw, my two Fronteac vines got hit very hard on their leaves with nearly every new leaf being attacked and appearing to have been shot with a machine gun, which I learned are galls that are formed by the insect succking on the leaves and well as laying eggs on the leaves.

This darn bug has 18 lifecyles, some which damage the leaves, and others which damage the roots.

The question is; What should I do???

My first thought is to pull out the two Fronteac grape vines and to plant more resistant varieties there.
Those with an american root seem to be more resistant, whereas those of European heritage are most susceptible.

I wish the nursery who sold me them would have given me some kind of a heads up, but that is the way it is these days with buying everything on line. We have to do all our own homework.

There really does not appear to be any spray that is effective, but one approach to fight them that i read about is using Surround clay to spray the new leaves.

So, I am thinking to rip out the susceptible varieties, and then to spray the others in the coming year with Surround to try to get on top of the situation.

I am in central Kentucky which does have humid summers, which is what these bugs seem to like.

Does anyone else have any experience or advice for me???

Thank for giving this some thought and consideration!

John in Kentucky

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John
This article tells me you have a difficult issue with no logical or known way to cure it. Aphids are hard enough but this one should be reported to the county extension agency as well as state officials who need to bring enforcement against the source you got the vines from. Basically you imported this to your area and it can spread l. Best thing you can do is build a hot bonfire and dig up those vines letting the soil go with them into the fire. Then report to officials to do some enforcement with the nursery
What is phylloxera and why was it so significant? | Wine & Spirit Education Trust.

Dennis
Kent wa

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In further reading about the insect, once your exterminate it from your property, obtain disease resistant grape rootstocks and the graft above ground your preferred wine grape on approved rootstock only. You can also grow your own resistant rootstocks by using uninflected cuttings of an American grape. Since most Grapes now growing in the US have developed immunity, that’s probably your best approach seeing that your soil may now carry the insect for a few years. So extermination is first course of action then make a plan to use rootstocks that are immune to prevent spread or recurrence of this malady. Good luck!
Dennis
Kent, wa

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Phylloxera is endemic to the entire eastern US and it’s likely present everywhere in Kentucky due to the abundance of wild grape vines. Only very sandy soils seem to be spared. Vines that get foliar phylloxera have highly resistant roots, so it’s mostly just a cosmetic issue. If it’s severe enough it could reduce photosynthesis, but most grapes are so vigorous it may help reduce rampant growth.

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It’s impossible to eradicate phylloxera from your property. The French growers tried all sorts of things like flooding vineyards and spraying extremely toxic chemicals to control it, but it was not very effective.

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Didn’t hurt to try! Can’t never could! Most living creature succumb to fire, I suspect he only has several small areas to clean. Might not get it all, but if he replaces them with resistant vines, what’s gonna feed their continuance?
Dennis

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The billions of wild grape vines act as a vast, nearly infinite reservoir of the bugs. I have a few rupestris hybrids that get the foliar form really bad occasionally, but it doesn’t seem to harm them at all. Vines with highly resistant foliage are also more likely to have highly sensitive roots. The better the root resistance, the worse the foliar sensitivity and vice versa. There are plenty of other wine grapes that may tolerate it on the roots without the foliar issues, at least for a few years. If the phylloxera pressure is really bad in that location, grafting something else to Frontenac would be a possible option. The roots are highly resistant.

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Thanks all for the input. Yes it is true, there are wild grape vines growing everywhere around us! It’s like another type of weed that I have to deal with.

On one hand, I would like to be proactive and do something about this.

But it would seem that some of you are saying, I can just ignore them and go on with my gardening?

Besides the Fronteac, my Thomacord also got a lot of it on the leaves last year. But the plant remainded strong, and grew a lot, and still seems vigorous.

I have no experience with grafting on to roots, so I wouldn’t know how to do that.

If it would help long term, I don’t mind just giving up on the Fronteac, and going with some American vines.

I am also thinking about planting some Muscadines, which are native to the South. I hear they are also quite resistant to disease.

Well, we are still just coming into winter, so I still have some time to figure out the best approach. If anyone else has any good advice on what I should do, I am all ears.

Thanks! John in Kentucky