It’s (past) time once again for what has heretofore been a nearly annual update and review on
controlling the fungal diseases that grape growers must regularly contend with in our eastern
climate. As always, I’d like to acknowledge the outstanding team of grape pathologists here in
Geneva, which includes bacteriologists (Tom Burr’s program) and virologists (Marc Fuchs’s
program) in addition to those of us who work on fungal diseases: faculty colleagues and
cooperators (David Gadoury, Lance-Cadle-Davidson); research technicians (Dave Combs and
the now-retired Duane Riegel and Judy Burr); and graduate students and post-docs too numerous
to mention now. Special recognition is also due to Rick Dunst, formerly with the Cornell
program at the Lake Erie grape research facilities, for his (and the crew’s) invaluable input on
the work conducted there. I’d also be seriously remiss in failing to acknowledge the significant
contributions of Cornell Cooperative Extension educators over the years, who often are the
unsung heroes in facilitating on-farm field work and sampling, and who serve as absolutely
essential “eyes and ears” (as do private-sector consultants) for university types who want to
know what’s really going on in the field rather than pretending that they do. It truly is the
combined efforts of all of these people that serve as the basis for most of the following.