In September, Warren Birchmore, Technical Assistant for Vinehealth Australia, was invited by a major company in North East Victoria to educate teams on phylloxera.
Two presentations were provided to 35 vineyard and winery staff. The training included;
- What Vinehealth Australia does and why a South Australian organisation in a state without phylloxera was talking to Victorian industry staff living with phylloxera.
- The biology of phylloxera.
- The importance of biosecurity and management considerations.
- Victorian movement conditions.
- The importance of controlling the spread of phylloxera.
The course was tailored specifically to the winery’s request, aiming for practical awareness for those on the front line for preventing the spread of phylloxera.
While phylloxera was the main focus, there are many other biosecurity threats we are trying to keep out of Australia, including Pierce’s Disease, Brown Marmorated Stink Bugs and other exotic and more virulent strains of phylloxera.
“We were happy to travel to North East Victoria to provide training, as a little bit of time spent each year in preventing the spread of phylloxera interstate is far more efficient than the expense of dealing with an incursion within South Australia,” Warren said. “There are also lessons to be learnt on how best to contain phylloxera from other states.
“The first site was well prepared with established protocols, activities and awareness. The vineyard, winery and cellar door staff are well aware of the risks of phylloxera and the impact it has on daily activities. There was great interaction and engagement with the small team. Some concerns were raised over the phylloxera strain to rootstock interaction and this site is keen to find out what phylloxera strains are local.
“The second site is at the start of its phylloxera journey. The staff were apprehensive about phylloxera with low awareness, but the engagement of the team by the end of the training was pleasing. The information and practical tools shared during the session will enable tighter movement restrictions to contain and prevent the spread of phylloxera. Staff are now aware of the reasons behind much of the infrastructure being built.”
There are many free resources available on the Vinehealth Australia website. See our tools section for fact sheets, protocols, signs, posters and more.
Vinehealth Australia is keen to roll out farm-gate hygiene training to South Australian businesses, especially contractors that work across multiple regions, or with regional associations so that training can be shared with multiple businesses at one time.
If businesses or regions require farm-gate hygiene or phylloxera training, please reach out to Warren Birchmore at warre@vinehealth.com.au or call 08 8273 0550. Please think of your target audience and what content to cover, and we can tailor a course to your needs.