Be cold-blooded about it. If you don't, you won't have vines out there in three years. Purcell acknowledges there are challenges in his advice. That same concern has been voiced by Elizabeth Grafton-Cardwell, an entomologist specializing in integrated pest management at UC Riverside. Otherwise it will move from crop to crop.
Some growers spray or otherwise treat for the pest.
And Bob Wynn, statewide coordinator of the state's Pierce's disease control program, said the California Department of Food and Agriculture does not plan to mandate spraying. It's frustrating, and we're learning a lot. She explained that the effective pesticides fall into categories that include organophosphates, carbamates and pyrethroids. Another family, with the chemical chloronicotinyl, is applied as a ground spray and is contained in Admire or Merit or applied on leaves in a spray called Provado. But they do not have broad registration for use on a variety of plantings.