| Three sampling methods (sweep net, pitfall, shake cloth) were used to collect arthropods from vineyard mid-rows and grapevine canopies and to identify the beneficial and pest arthropods found within those areas. Approximately 98,000 arthropods were collected, counted, and identified in the three years of this research. Clover and flowers attracted a more diverse complex of beneficials than grass. Grass attracted the most sharpshooter leafhoppers (Homoptera: Ciccadelidae), some of which may be vectors of Pierce's disease. False Chinch Bugs (Hemiptera, Nysius raphanus) may threaten the crop and warrant monitoring. Cultivated mid-rows did not support arthropod complexes and thus did not enhance populations of beneficials. Notable beneficials enhanced by cover crop plant diversity within vineyards include Coleoptera, Lathridiid; Hemiptera, Orius and Nabis; Arachnida, Clubionidae Trachelas and Chiracanthium, Thomisidae; Micryphantidae Erigone dentosa; and Hymenoptera, Chalcidoidea. |
