At early stages of Esca, the grapevine trunk is colonized by Phaeomoniella chlamydospora, which leads to a discolouration of the wood. At later stages, the wood is attacked by the white rot basidiomycete Fomitiporia mediterranea, which leads finally to the death of the grapevine and consequently major economic losses. In a research project several products could be tested for their efficacy against wood colonization by Phaeomoniella chlamydospora. A novel testing method, which was further developed within the frame of the project, has been applied. A strain of Phaeomoniella chlamydospora, which has been tagged with a fluorescent marker, was used and the effect of the investigated products could be visualized under a fluorescent microscope. This method allowed evaluation of test results after shorter time periods than normally used for other studies. None of the products could significantly reduce wood colonization by Phaeomoniella chlamydospora. Additionally, new laboratory testing methods have been developed for work with Fomitiporia mediterranea. This allowed the testing of isolates from the strain collections of the project partners for their efficacy against wood colonization by Fomitiporia mediterranea. A few strains with promising features could be selected for further experiments. Finally, grapevine surgery was tested in experimental vineyards. This newly developed methods showed promising results. |