Vineyard Views & Events

Attend a meet and greet event hosted by Tori Norville, UC ANR Fire Science Advisor to learn more about prescribed fire and build community support for a prescribed burn association in Napa County.

This event will be held in the UC Cooperative Extension meeting room on May 30, 2023 from 5:30-7:00 PM. (This is the first of many events planned for Napa).

Questions? Follow the link below to the event flier or contact Tori Norville.

UCCE and the Sonoma County Vineyard Technical Group are hosting Sonoma County Grape Day on Feb 8, 2023, from 7 AM to 12 PM. Topics include trellis design for climate adaptation, conservation biological control, rootstock breeding, vine mealybug, soil health and pesticide licensing.

Access the newsletter link for full agenda and registration details.

A new UC ANR Advisor has joined our team. Welcome, Dr. Ellen ("Ellie") Andrews, Specialty Crops Advisor for Napa, Sonoma, Marin. Dr. Andrews will support growers in our region by working on all "non-grape" Specialty Crops, including annuals and perennials.

Trained in Horticulture & Agronomy (UC Davis), and Plant Health Management (The Ohio State University), Dr. Andrews enjoys the multidisciplinary nature of applied agricultural sciences, and is experienced working across multiple cropping systems and with organizations focused on local food security.

Please welcome Dr. Andrews to UCCE team, and don't hesitate to introduce yourself!

Introducing Tori Norville, UCCE Fire Advisor serving Napa, Marin and Sonoma Counties.

Tori comes to us from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection and the Jackson Demonstration State Forest where she has been leading fire fuel reduction research and working to bring prescribed fire into the coast redwoods. She holds B.S and M.S in Forestry from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo and is a Registered Professional forester.

Tori would enjoy the opportunity to introduce herself as she develops programs to serve the needs of the Napa community. Please do not hesitate to reach out. To read more about Tori, and find her contact information, follow the newsletter link.

Introducing Breanna Martinico, a new UC Cooperative Extension Advisor focusing on human-wildlife interactions. A broadly trained wildlife biologist, ecologist, and ornithologist with experience researching beneficial and detrimental impacts of wildlife in agroecosystems of California.

Now based at the UCCE office in Napa County, serving growers in Napa, Solano and Lake. Breanna is motivated to create win-win situations for farmers and wildlife by minimizing pest damage and increasing beneficial ecosystem services.

Breanna would enjoy the opportunity to introduce herself personally as she develops programs to serve the needs of the Napa community. Please don’t hesitate to reach out with your wildlife questions, via email, phone, or in-person.

To read more about Breanna and access her contact information, follow the link below to the newsletter.

There is still time to register for a vineyard grazing webinar hosted by UCCE and UC Davis. 

Monday, July 18, 2022 from 1:00-3:30 PM.

Please join us for the North Coast Olive Field Day: canopy management, alternate bearing, olive diseases and olive fruit fly. 

August 16, 2022

8:00 AM- 1:00 PM at McEvoy Ranch, Petaluma, CA

Registration is required. Follow the newsletter link for full details on the event. This is an outdoor event, please wear appropriate footwear and bring a hat. 

Questions? Contact Cindy Kron, North Coast IPM Advisor.

During drought years, we often experience large VMB populations, putting Napa vineyards at increased risk for crop damage and pest spread. Respond accordingly by scheduling early interventions to reduce populations.

Educational resources and FAQ are answered on our website.

Follow the newsletter link for an early April update on VMB populations.

Dr. Jay Pscheidt and Sarah Lowder at Oregon State University are recruiting participants to a study on regional communication and group cooperation. If you are involved in pest or disease management decisions, please consider participating by completing one or both surveys.

Thank you in advance for your consideration & participation!

Survey 1: How do you communicate? (5- 10 minutes) https://oregonstate.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_b9hHZAhnRS79feJ

Survey 2: What do you think about pest management? (20-30 minutes) https://oregonstate.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_25hRtjl2G5JuBrn

The Napa County Agricultural Commissioner's Office has reported the following information regarding the herbicide Weed Slayer.

"It has come to our attention that the organic herbicide, Weed Slayer, Agro Research International, is under investigation by the California Department of Food & Agriculture and the California Department of Pesticide Regulation for possible product contamination.

If you have any product in storage, we recommend that conventional and particularly organically certified growers do not apply the herbicide pending results from the ongoing investigations."

If you have any questions, please contact staff of the Ag Commissioner's office in your county.

For Napa, that is agcommissioner@countyofnapa.org or (707) 253-4357.

Life cycle and monitoring guidelines for threecornered alfalfa hopper in vineyards.

Three leafhopper species--western grape, variegated and Virginia creeper--are present in Napa vineyards. Both variegated and Virginia creeper are invasive species, whose range has expanded considerably in Napa in the last 10 years. Proper identification of vineyard leafhoppers is critical to development of a successful management strategy. Access the newsletter link below for a "Quick Reference Guide to North Coast Vineyard Leafhoppers".

The UCCE-Napa viticulture team has a new resource for Pierce's disease: https://ucceviticulturenapa.wixsite.com/uccevitnapa/bgss-live-map

On this website you will find:

Blue-green sharpshooter trap counts from county-wide monitoring program

Guidelines for trapping blue-green sharpshooters

Resources for identifying common vectors

Sharpshooters and spittlebugs are vectors of Xylella fastidiosa, the causal agent of Pierce's disease of grapevines. In 2020, the UCCE-Napa viticulture team, with support from the Napa County Wine grape Pest and Disease Control District, launched a county-wide monitoring program for blue-green sharpshooter (BGSS), the most common vector in the north coast region. Trap data are updated in real time and are accessible via the link above. Trap data are viewable by growing region, by date, and by landscape category (riparian, ornamental, other).

Spotted lanternfly is a newly invasive pest that has been found in several eastern states. Feeding activity and copious honeydew production can damage vines and fruit trees and promote the growth of sooty mold. 

There is great potential for dispersal of this insect from the eastern US to other regions, given that females will lay eggs on a variety of inanimate objects (pallets, outdoor equipment, railway cars) that may be moved large distances.   

UCCE IPM Advisor Cindy Kron developed these resources to support identification and detection efforts:

http://cesonoma.ucanr.edu/Integrated_Pest_Management685/Spotted_Lanternfly_187/

https://ucanr.edu/sites/SoCo/files/315819.pdf

Vigilance and efforts to identify early invaders are critical to a successful response, should this pest be introduced to California. Report sightings and bring suspicious specimens to your local Agricultural Commissioner's office for confirmation. 

Follow the link to the newsletter below for more information on the status of resistance testing for grape powdery mildew for the DMI (FRAC 3) fungicides. 

Vine mealybug has been found on recent nursery shipments of green-growing vines in the North Coast region. 

Follow the newsletter link below to learn more. The newsletter can be used as training tool for crews inspecting vines as they are received. 

In Napa County, staff of the Agricultural Commissioner inspect all incoming shipments of green-growing vines and nursery plants. If you are expecting a shipment, contact the Agricultural Commissioner's office: (707) 253-4357

In early September 2015, the California Department of Food & Agriculture confirmed the presence of thousand cankers disease of walnut in Napa County. 

Access the newsletter below for additional information on this fungal disease and the beetle that moves it from tree to tree. 

On June 24, 2015, staff of the Napa County Agricultural Commissioner found one male Western Grapeleaf Skeletonizer in a pheromone-baited trap in a vineyard on Tubbs Lane in Calistoga. 

UCCE Advisors Lucia Varela and Monica Cooper developed a "Monitoring Guide for Western Grapeleaf Skeletonizer" so that vineyard owners, growers and workers could familiarize themselves with the pest's life stages and feeding habits.

Please use the newsletter link below to access the Monitoring Guide (English and Spanish versions). 

If you find this pest or feeding damage in Napa County please contact the office of the Agricultural Commissioner: 707-253-4357, agcommissioner@countyofnapa.org OR contact UC Cooperative Extension: 707-253-4221, cenapa@ucanr.edu

For additional information on biology and management of this pest, access the UC IPM Pest Management Guide for Western Grapeleaf Skeletonizer. 

In April, we observed leaf symptoms in select vineyards consistent with feeding damage by arboreal camel crickets. 

For photos and additional information, access the newsletter using the link provided below. 

Resources for water management of grapevines under drought conditions (courtesy of our colleagues in Australia) are available in the Irrigation section of the UC Cooperative Extension-Napa County website: http://cenapa.ucanr.edu/Napa_County_Programs/Viticulture/Irrigation/

Considerations for managing vine growth & yield under water-limiting conditions include:

1. Managing crop size through reductions in bud numbers and/or thinning after set. Adjust crop size to predicted water availability. 

2. If possible, target supplementary irrigation to critical physiological periods: (a) budburst to flowering, (b) flowering to fruit set, (c) veraison to harvest, (d) harvest to leaf fall--hopefully will be raining by then!

3. Organic residues (from cover crops or weeds) and mulches may moderate soil surface temperatures.  

Update on Virginia creeper leafhopper (VCLH) populations:

Populations of Virginia creeper leafhopper (VCLH) have been identified in Napa County, in Pope Valley.

Follow the newsletter link below for additional information on VCLH and variegated leafhopper populations in Napa, including photos and links to additional training tools. Early detection and identification can be critical to avoiding economic injury. 

Dr. Arturo Calderon, Postdoctoral scholar, USDA and UC Davis has released an instructional video (in Spanish) on the use of the pressure bomb to measure grapevine leaf water potential. 

We hope you will find this video to be a useful training tool.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=83FXDi8Vkxg

Since its introduction to the United States from Asia in the 1990's, the brown marmorated stink bug has become established in the mid-Atlantic states, as well as Portland, OR and Los Angeles, CA. 

You can support pest prevention efforts by being aware, recognizing the pest, and reporting suspicious specimens. 

The UC IPM Pest Alert Card for BMSB provides information on identification and damage. Consider printing and displaying it to increase awareness.  

We have updated our newsletter addressing phylloxera on resistant rootstocks.

Follow the newsletter link below to read our updated report.  

In January, Dr. Gubler and I visited a vineyard that seemed to have very clear symptoms of a trunk disease (Eutypa or Botryosphaeria). Yet when we looked closer, we determined the symptoms were not caused by a pathogen...link to the newsletter below to see photographs and read our full report. 

Workshop Flyer
Thursday, May 26, 2011
9:00 am - 11:00 am
UC Davis Oakville Experimental Vineyard
1380 Oakville Grade Road
Oakville

Speaker:  Dr. Roger Baldwin, UC IPM, Statewide Vertebrate Control Advisor

Dr. Baldwin will provide an overview of pocket gophers and discuss the use of baiting and trapping.  He will also provide demonstrations on baiting and trapping techniques.

Attendance is limited to 50 participants (3 maximum per company).
Pre-registration is required.
1.5 CE hours have been approved for this workshop.

Register at http://ucanr.org/gophercontrolworkshop

It's that time of year: shriveled berries on ripening clusters. See the attached article by Krasnow et al. in California Agriculture. The authors describe the distinctive symptoms of 4 common types of berry shrivel disorder in grape in California.

Leafroll Spread and Plant Material information and survey form; Planting Material Workshop flyer and registration form; Napa County UCCE Viticulture Farm Advisor position, more..

Viticulture Program Representative, View from Below the Vine, Weed Field Meeting

New Weed Advisor in Napa Light Brown Apple Moth Herbicide Resistant Weeds ... More

Vine Mealybug - Little Good News Berry Shrivel Napa Valley Viticultural Fair ...More

Vine Mealybug Update UC Budget Woes Continue Olive Fly Hits Hard PP Research Symposium New Publications