Managing Vineyard Insect and Mite Pests
Grape Flea Beetle
The grape flea beetle (Altica spp.), also known as the steely beetle, is a native insect and occurs in almost all states east of the Rocky Mountains and in Canada.
Symptoms
Adult flea beetles cause two types of damage—feeding directly on the buds and feeding on the foliage (See Figure 22.6). Overwintering adults attack the swelling buds by boring into them and hollowing out the inside. In contrast, the larvae and summer adults feed on the upper and lower leaf surfaces avoiding the leaf veins, causing some damage, although this injury is usually of little consequence.
Life Cycle
The adult grape flea beetle is one of the first insect pests to appear in vineyards in the spring. The adults overwinter in trashy or wooded areas and emerge in the spring when grapevine buds begin to swell. After feeding on buds for 1 to 2 weeks, females mate and lay masses of pale yellow eggs in cracks in the bark, at the base of buds, under bud scales, and on foliage (occasionally on upper leaf surface).
Monitoring
Monitoring for grape flea beetle should begin in the spring from bud swell to and continue until bud development is past the critical stage.
Cultural Pest Control
Woodlots and wasteland areas near vineyards should be cleaned up to eliminate overwintering sites.
Chemical Pest Control
There are several effective, broad-spectrum, insecticides labeled for grape flea beetle in grapes including Sevin (carbaryl), Imidan (phosmet), Baythroid (cyfluthrin), Leverage (imidacloprid and cyfluthrin), and Danitol (fenpropathrin). Insecticides used for controlling grape flea beetle in vineyards are presented in Appendix K, Insecticides Registered for Use in Vineyards.
Applying Control Materials
Infestations can be controlled with early-season insecticide application against adults migrating to grapevines from their hibernation sites, but timing is very critical.
Click on the following topics for more information on managing vineyard insect and mite pests.
