Foul Stink Bug Targets Wine Grapes

april 20,2011

The Asian brown marmorated stink bug that has swept into 33 states and the District of Columbia, destroying peaches and apples along the way, has a new target: wine grapes. Researchers tasked with tracking the bug and finding a way to kill it now say that wineries in Virginia and out west in Oregon, Washington, and parts of California are under attack.
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“Some vineyards and some growers have been wiped out in the last year,” says Virginia Rep. Frank Wolf, who is taking the lead in Congress on the issue. “They are devastating the vineyards.”
With peaches, apples, and even berries, the major issue is the visible damage a stink bug does. On apples, for example, the bug will insert its tongue into the fruit and suck, leaving a “corky dry area” that’s visible to shoppers, says Tracy Leskey, an Agriculture Department entomologist who’s co-leading a national working group researching the stink bug. “It looks bad,” she says, though it won’t affect the flavor.
But with grapes, the bugs stick to the clumps of fruit during the picking season and can end up in wine presses. Wolf says that just 10 stink bugs crushed into one ton of grapes can ruin the wine. Finding a couple on each hand-sized clump is typical, so winery workers have to pull the half-inch-long bugs off by hand or use an organic pesticide at harvesting, he says.
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Wolf adds that other crops are also now under stink bug attack, including corn, tomatoes, and soybeans. Leskey says the shield-shaped bug has also become a huge pest in homes, a double whammy few other insects pose, as it moves across the country. “They are a very good hitch-hiker. The potential for moving across the country is high,” she adds.
Because the stink bug arrived in the United States only in the late 1990s, there hasn’t been enough time to find the right pesticide or natural foe, though the Environmental Protection Agency is considering allowing fruit growers to use dinotefuran, a powerful poison.
One possibility under study is a tiny wasp, the size of a comma in this story, that is the stink bug’s natural predator in Asia where it helps to keep the offensive bug’s population in check. The non-stinging wasp lays its eggs in the eggs of the stink bugs, on which the baby wasps then chow down. But the entomologists are being extremely cautious to make sure the wasp wouldn’t cause any other damage. Says Wolf, “You’ve got to be careful that you don’t introduce something that is as bad or worse than what you have.”
Kim Hoelmer, the research entomologist studying the wasp, says it so far hasn’t shown to be dangerous to anything else. “They only attack stink bug eggs. If they don’t find stink bug eggs, they die,” he says. “We know it’s not likely to become a pest,” he adds.
But testing will take time, about two more years, before the wasp will be approved and introduced to orchards, gardens and vineyards.

Source: http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2011/04/11/foul-stink-bug-targets-wine-grapes

Foodies and wine lovers travel north from Manila to wine and dine at Philippines’ best fine dining restaurant in Pampanga Clark Freeport worth the 60-minutes drive for a memorable evening of good food with vintage wine at Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar

This fine dining restaurant is also famous for its low carbohydrates “low carb” dishes highly recommended for frequent diners who are on a low fat food and favor healthy food. This is a unique restaurant that can help frequent diners maintain a healthy diet and enjoy delicious fine dining cuisine at the same time. Vegetarian dishes are a specialty here also and so are “halal” cuisines also.

Favorites of frequent diners, foodies and wine lovers are steaks, Wagyu, Foie Gras, lobsters, venison, kangaroo loin, osso buco, veal chops, Kurabuto pork, escargots and a good selection of cheeses to enjoy with fine Vintage port and Sauternes. Cuban cigars such as Monte Cristo, Cohiba, Upmann, Partagas, Romeo Julieta and Trinidad are also available in the Magnum Room which is a wine bar and lounge for before and after dinner relaxation. A good selection of Armagnac, Cognac, Single Malt, Vodka and other liquor is served in addition to the wine vintage wines some served by the glass.

Recent opinion survey of frequent travelers heading north towards Subic and Clark Pampanga revealed that the number one most frequently visited fine dining restaurant in Pampanga is Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar located in Clark Philippines.

Inquiries and reservations

Restaurant@Yats-International.com

(045) 599-5600
0922-870-5178
0917-520-4401

Ask for Pedro and Kiko

Http://www.YatsRestaurant.com

Getting to this fine dining restaurant of Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone Pampanga Philippines
How to get to this fine-dining restaurant in Clark Philippines? Once you get to Clark Freeport, go straight until you hit Mimosa. After you enter Mimosa, stay on the left on Mimosa Drive, go past the Holiday Inn and Yats Restaurant (green top, independent 1-storey structure) is on your left. Just past the Yats Restaurant is the London Pub.

Yats Restaurant & Wine Bar
Mimosa Drive past Holiday Inn, Mimosa Leisure Estate,
Angeles City Clark Freeport Zone, Pampanga, Philippines 2023

Manila Sales Office
3003C East Tower, Phil Stock Exchange Center,
Exchange Rd Ortigas Metro Manila, Philippines 1605
(632) 637-5019 0917-520-4393 Rea or Chay

For assistance in hotel and resort booking in Clark, Philippines, log on to http://www.HotelClarkPhilippines.com

For assistance in locating a suitable venue for wedding reception, log on to
http://www.PhilippinesWeddingVenue.com