Aggiornamenti sulla muffa grigia della vite

[Autom. eng. transl.] The gray mold or rot of the bunch, caused by the fungus Botrytis cinerea Pers., Represents one of the most damaging diseases for the vine. In fact it is able to cause serious losses both quantitative, to the harvest, and qualitative, on the wine-making. Although in specific environmental and climatic conditions the infections of this fungus reach the status of "noble rot", generally they appear under the harmful form of the rot of the bunch. The biological cycle of this pathogen is extremely complex in that it is able to cause infection on different organs and in different phenological stages of the host and can survive as saprophytes during unfavorable periods. Moreover, recent studies have shown that the population of B. cinerea present in the vineyard consists of two twin species, called simpatrices, which are distributed in a distinct way during the season and on the different organs of the plant. Over the years, numerous epidemiological models have been developed in an attempt to interpret and predict botrytic infections, but currently there is not yet a sufficiently accurate and robust model to be employed in a system of forecasting and warning in Italian conditions.