Evaluation of the Effects of Spray Technology and Volume Rate on the Control of Grape Berry Moth in Mountain Viticulture

Costas Michael, Emilio Gil, Montserrat Gallart and Menelaos C. Stavrinides
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Costas Michael: Department of Agricultural Sciences, Biotechnology and Food Science, Cyprus University of Technology, Arch. Kyprianos 30, 3036 Limassol, Cyprus
Emilio Gil: Department of Agri-Food Engineering and Biotechnology, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Esteve Terradas 8, Campus del Baix Llobregat 08860 Castelldefels, 08034 Barcelona, Spain
Montserrat Gallart: Department of Agri-Food Engineering and Biotechnology, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Esteve Terradas 8, Campus del Baix Llobregat 08860 Castelldefels, 08034 Barcelona, Spain
Menelaos C. Stavrinides: Department of Agricultural Sciences, Biotechnology and Food Science, Cyprus University of Technology, Arch. Kyprianos 30, 3036 Limassol, Cyprus

Agriculture, 2021, vol. 11, issue 2, 1-15

Abstract: The current work evaluated spray coverage and pest control effectiveness against the grape berry moth ( Lobesia botrana ) by two different spray technologies and volume rates: A spray gun (high-volume sprayer—HVS) calibrated at 1000 L ha −1 and a conventional orchard sprayer calibrated at 500 L ha −1 (OS500) or 250 L ha −1 (OS250). Experiments were carried out in three different grape varieties over two years in mountain vineyards on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus. The median coverage for HVS remained above 80% for all three varieties, while that for OS500 ranged from 26% to 56%, and that for OS250 from 18% to 37%. Infestation by the grape berry moth varied from about 2.5% for Palomino, to 8% for Carignan and 3.2% for Xynisteri. Infestation in sprayed plots remained below 1.8% for all treatments, varieties and study years. Although infestation levels in OS250 were not different than the control in two varieties, the infestation levels among sprayer treatments did not differ by more than one percentage point. The current work suggests that lowering application volume and pesticide amount to 50% or more, in some cases, provides adequate control and represents an effective option for reducing pesticide use in vineyards.

Keywords: vineyards; pest control; pesticide use; sustainable use of pesticides directive; Farm to Fork Strategy (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: Q1 Q10 Q11 Q12 Q13 Q14 Q15 Q16 Q17 Q18 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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