Reduction of copper as a plant protection product in organic viticulture is a challenge.
Solution
Copper alternative, Tagatose, an organic alternative plant protection agent, is discussed as a solution in a vineyard in Hungary.
Description
In the RELACS project, a survey on the current copper use in Hungary and investigations of the efficacy of a potential copper substitute, Tagatose peronospora and phytophthora, in vineyards are tested.
Vintner and owner, Márton Ruppert, for his farm Tagyon Hil in Hungary, has been using Tagatose to replace copper over the past two years. According to him, Tagatose is effective, useful and can be easily mixed and used in tank mixtures when applied as a powder. Hence, no disadvantage in comparison to common plant protection products with copper content could be found.
Spray volume used ranges between 350-420 l/ha, with row spacing of 2.2 m in the vineyards. The farmer emphasizes the importance of proper and timely vineyard maintenance: including heading, cover crops between the rows and removing leaves from grape bunch zone to help with aeration, therefore reducing the need for plant protection treatments. Having accurate weather predictions has also helped him reduce the number of treatments by one or two.
In order to use the comment function, you must register with the third-party provider "Disqus".
When you activate this function, your browser establishes a direct connection with the servers of the third-party provider. We would like to point out that data is transmitted to the third-party provider after activation, and the latter may set cookies that can also be used for analysis and marketing purposes. For more information, please refer to our privacy policy.
Disqus
In order to use the comment function, you must register with the third-party provider "Disqus".
When you activate this function, your browser establishes a direct connection with the servers of the third-party provider. We would like to point out that data is transmitted to the third-party provider after activation, and the latter may set cookies that can also be used for analysis and marketing purposes. For more information, please refer to our privacy policy.
Activate