Mauke

Name (also Mauche or plant cancer) for a vine disease, which can also occur in many other plants. On fruit trees it is feared as "root canker". It mainly affects the perennial wood above ground (rarely the one-year-old wood). On the vine, it is caused by the bacterium Agrobacterium vitis and occurs especially after frosty winters with prolonged temperatures below 15 °Celsius, which have damaged the vines. In spring, it manifests itself as light brown galls (growths, cancerous nodes) on the lower part of the trunk, mostly above the grafting point, which can later extend up the trunk in the shape of a lath. As the disease progresses, the proliferating and darkening tissue grows out of the bark, often causing the vine to die years later. The picture shows the disease in an advanced stage on a Müller-Thurgau vine.

Mauke an Müller-Thurgau Rebstock

Almost all varieties of the European Vitis vinifera are susceptible, while certain varieties of the American Vitis labrusca are resistant. To avoid this, the vines must be protected against frost in winter. It is not yet clear exactly how the bacterium gets onto the vines. It is possible that the bacterium is spread via infected mother plants of rootstocks or scions in the case of grafting. At present, it is not possible to combat the disease directly. Recently, the disease has been investigated in detail and first successes have been achieved by means of genetic engineering. See also a complete list of all pests and diseases under the keyword vine enemies.

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Mauke

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