Since our March E-news fruit fly update there have been no new fruit fly outbreaks declared in South Australia. There have been four small extensions to the metropolitan Adelaide Salisbury North Queensland fruit fly outbreak due to isolated trees being found with larvae.
Given this is our final fruit fly update for V24 as vintage has come to a close for another year, we wish to advise the following:
Managing unsold grapes
To reduce the risk of fruit fly infection of unsold grapes, PIRSA recommends unsold grapes are harvested to the ground. Set up the harvester to spread the grapes out, and where possible run the harvester over the grapes in the same action to macerate them and begin the desiccation process.
Earliest anticipated reinstatement date
As at 23 April –
The earliest anticipated reinstatement for all Riverland fruit fly outbreaks is 8 December 2024. However, with the current management model, there is need that an entire 12-month period passes without detections before outbreak restrictions can be lifted from this area.
The earliest anticipated reinstatement for the metropolitan Adelaide fruit fly outbreak is 13 November 2024.
Fruit fly requirements for V25
Vineyard owners and wineries within, sending into and out of the Riverland should presume that the same movement requirements for sending and receiving winegrapes will hold for V25, unless advised otherwise.
SA vineyard owners and wineries are advised to keep a watching brief here on the status of the metropolitan Adelaide fruit fly outbreak as to whether requirements will be in force for sending and receiving winegrapes out of and through the affected area in V25.
Maps
As at 1 May, Vinehealth will cease posting new fruit fly outbreak maps to our website and advising individual growers of changes to quarantine boundaries. We will resume active fruit fly updates in late October to support industry and PIRSA.
Review of V24
If you have any operational feedback from V24 you wish to provide in relation to fruit fly, please don’t hesitate to contact Vinehealth’s Technical Assistant Warren Birchmore by email warren@vinehealth.com.au or phone on 0417 982 970.