The AWRI publication Agrochemicals registered for use in Australian viticulture 2008/2009 is now available.
Major changes in the 2008/2009 Dog Book
1. TABLES
Table 1. Recommendations
Active constituents and products
There have been a number of product changes but there have been no changes in the active constituents i.e. there were no new active constituents and none of the existing active constituents were removed.
Restrictions on use
The major change to note is the recommended export withholding period for carbendazim.
The 2008/2009 restriction on the use of products which contain the active constituent carbendazim is Not recommended for use on grapes destined for export wines.
New pests
In table one there is now an entry for the Australian Plague Locust and Wingless Grasshoppers.
Format
The format of the table has had some minor revision. Table 1: Recommendations now lists the major pests and diseases and their restriction on use according to chemical type. Therefore, the diseases controlled by fungicides are listed first and the pest and/or diseases controlled by insecticides are listed second. Within each category the pest or disease is listed in alphabetical order.
Table 2: Agrochemicals registered for use in Australian viticulture
Active constituents and products
There have been a number of product changes but there have been no changes in the active constituents i.e. there were no new active constituents and none of the existing active constituents were removed.
Activity groups
There have been some minor changes to the herbicide activity groups.
Amitrole was Group F it is now group Q.
Dichlobenil and isoxaben were Group K but are now Group O.
Format
The format of the table has had some minor revision. The active constituent categories are now in alphabetical order i.e. Fungicides, Herbicides, Insecticides and Plant Growth Regulators.
2. PRODUCTS
APVMA 52546
The Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority have approved an extension of the Avatar label to include the use of Avatar to control Wingless Grasshoppers and suppress Earwig populations in grapevines. Avatar previously only had a registration for LBAM, Garden Weevil and Grapevine Moth.
Avatar is a DuPont product. It contains the active constituent indoxacarb which is a group 22A insecticide.
Restriction on use for export grapes: Use no later than E-L 31 (before bunch closure), but do not use later than 8 weeks before harvest.
APVMA 62042
Alliance has been granted registration by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority for the control of weeds in vineyards. This product does not appear in the 2008/2009 agrochemical booklet as registration was not received until after the booklet was published.
Alliance is a Crop Care product. It contains the active constituents amitrole and paraquat which are Group Q and L herbicides respectively.
3. PERMITS
AWRI: Permit 10127
Permit 10127 replaces permit 7810. Permit 10127 currently issued by the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority, allows the use of Sumi-Alpha Flex (containing 50 g/L esfenvalerate as its only active constituent) for the control of Garden weevil in grapevines grown in Tasmania and Western Australia.
For other permit information visit the AWRI agrochemical website http://www.awri.com.au/agrochemicals/
4. OTHER AGROCHEMICAL ISSUES
Surround and Screen do not require APVMA registration.
Due to another hot and dry season, the use of products such as Surround and Screen were being considered as a way of reducing leaf temperatures relative to ambient temperatures.
Surround and Screen as protectants against sunburn and heat stress are not required to be registered by the APVMA and there is no State or Territory legislation regulating their use. The registration process is governed by Commonwealth legislation. The agricultural chemical products that require registration encompasses all herbicides, insecticides, fungicides and growth regulators. It does not include products such as Surround and Screen because they do not fit the definition of an agricultural chemical product (For more information on this definition go to http://www.apvma.gov.au/registration/chemreg.shtml). Therefore, Surround and Screen can be used on grapevines despite the fact that grapevines do not appear on the label. Given the nature of the product, residues might be present at harvest, especially in the case of late season applications. We do not know if this will have any impact on the winemaking process and final wine quality. It is advised that you contact your winery or grape purchaser prior to application of these products.
5. AWRI Online Search Facility for Agrochemicals.
The AWRI has been supporting grapegrowers and winemakers for more than two decades with comprehensive information of what and when to spray your vines. To make the information easier for you to access, the AWRI has developed an ‘Online Search Facility for Agrochemicals’ which provides a searchable web-based format, delivering a more efficient way of retrieving agrochemical information currently available on the AWRI website.
Using this facility, users can rapidly access information contained in the current AWRI publication Agrochemicals registered for use in Australian viticulture (often called the Dog Book). It also provides additional information derived from the AWRI agrochemical database which is not published in the Dog book. Further information will be added in future enhancements to the search facility.
The new AWRI Online Search Facility for Agrochemicals can be accessed by visiting the agrochemical section of the AWRI website http://www.awri.com.au/industry_support/viticulture/agrochemicals/
This information is provided to inform the wine industry of agrochemical product information, and should not be interpreted as an endorsement.