Mechanical behaviour of grapevine wood affected by Xylotrechus arvicola

Abstract

The cerambycid insect Xylotrechus arvicola is considered a pest that affects the wood of the grapevine ( Vitis vinifera ) in the major wine areas of the Iberian Peninsula. The larva of this insect perforates the grape - vine wood, resulting in structural and biomechanical failure of the vine plants. Vine samples from wood damaged by X. arvicola larvae were picked up from different vineyards and grape varieties. Compressive and flexural tests were performed in order to assess the mechanical behaviour of the wood samples. Total length of the cracks in wood samples (TLCWS) that appeared on the surface of the grapevine wood samples after the mechanical tests was measured. Compressive strength (CS) and flexural strength (FS) decreased with the increase of the cross-sectional area (CSA) of both branches and trunks, regardless