Term for the method of combating phylloxera used from the last third of the 19th century onwards by injecting liquid carbon disulphide (carbon disulphide) into the soil using large sprays. The colourless, malodorous liquid is obtained by passing sulphur vapours over glowing charcoal. The process had already been successful with the grain beetle and was first tested against phylloxera in Bordeaux by the Burgundian chemist Baron Paul Thénard (1819-1884) in 1869.
In the first experiments the remedy was still used far too excessively, so that not only the vine lice, but also all other organisms in the vineyard were killed. Due to the poisonous vapours, the agent was also not without danger and very easily flammable. Subsequently, this procedure was then practised throughout Europe. In Austria, the viticulture expert Franz Kober (1864-1943) rendered outstanding services in this respect.
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Roman Horvath MW
Domäne Wachau (Wachau)