Visual symptoms of trunk diseases do not predict vine death

Abstract

Grapevine trunk diseases are the main reason for vine death in older vineyards These deaths result in economic losses and reduce the productive life of the vineyard On six occasions during a 10year period a single vineyard in Marlborough was monitored for vine deaths A visual assessment of trunk disease symptoms (low canopy vigour and cankers) in individual vines showed that these symptoms did not predict vine death at the next assessment The method of visual assessment is discussed in the context of other Sauvignon blanc vineyards in Marlborough that were similarly assessed but over a shorter time period (within a year) To predict vineyard longevity for the New Zealand industry improved visual assessments or an alternative method of monitoring vine health status is required