Designed in 1876 by G. Gastine to help the battle against an aphid-like insect Phylloxera native to North America, it was carried across the Atlantic Ocean to Europe where it was first identified in 1863. During this period, it was common to import plants from overseas.
The aphid attacked the vine leaves and roots with the injector being designed to give a measured dose of Carbon Bisulphide into the soil, further information is giving below.
The battle against Phylloxera
In the late 19th century, the phylloxera epidemic destroyed most of the vineyards for wine grapes in Europe, most notably in France. Phylloxera was introduced to Europe when avid botanists in Victorian England collected specimens of American vines in the 1850s. Because phylloxera is native to North America, the native grape species are at least partially resistant. By contrast, the European wine grape Vitis vinifera is very susceptible to the insect.
The epidemic devastated vineyards in Britain and then moved to the European mainland, destroying most of the European grape growing industry. In 1863, the first vines began to deteriorate inexplicably in the southern Rhône region of France. The problem spread rapidly across the continent. In France alone, total wine production fell from 84.5 million hectolitres in 1875 to only 23.4 million hectolitres in 1889. Some estimates hold that between two-thirds and nine-tenths of all European vineyards were destroyed.
A cartoon from Punch magazine 1890
The phylloxera, a true gourmet, finds out the best vineyards and attaches itself to the best wines.
In France, one of the desperate measures of grape growers was to bury a live toad under each vine to draw out the "poison".
Another method used for many years was to treat the vine roots with Carbon Bisulphide also known as carbon disulfide (CS2), a chemical compound that has been used commercially since the 1800s.
Carbon Bisulphide is created by combining carbon and sulphur at high temperatures.
Application
When first used below the surface, it was poured into holes formed by driving an iron bar with a maul. The demand for a more convenient, accurate, and rapid working instrument was soon met by the invention of the pal-injector by M.Gastine. This instrument was later improved by M. Vermorel.
The Carbon Bisulphide is placed in a large chamber, from which an outlet leads down through a series of valves, so adjusted that the amount of each discharge can be exactly regulated as desired and opens near the tip of a pointed bar.
The instrument is forced into the ground by the handle and the pressure of the foot upon a spur to a depth of about 1 foot; the central plunger is then pressed down, and the desired amount of the liquid is discharged.
After withdrawing the instrument, the hole is closed with the foot, or as is usual in extensive work, another workman follows with a rammer, with which the holes are closed and the soil at the same time is firmly compacted.
It is said that two men working together in this way can make between 2,000 and 3,000 injections per day. One acre will require on the average from 10,000 to 12,000 holes.
Unfortunately, the above process and use of Carbon Bisulphide was not successful.
The Solution
The French government had offered over 320,000 Francs as a reward to whoever could discover a cure for the blight. Having reportedly been the first to suggest the possibility of using the resistant American rootstock, Leo Laliman tried to claim the money, but the French government refused to award it, with the rationale that he had not cured the blight, but rather stopped it from occurring. However, there may have been other reasons for the government denying Laliman the prize: he was mistrusted by several notable parties, and he was thought by many to have originally introduced the pest.
"Death to Phylloxera!"
(a French caricature from 1880)
A significant amount of research was devoted to finding a solution to the phylloxera problem, and two major solutions gradually emerged: grafting cuttings onto resistant rootstocks and hybridization.
Use of a resistant, or tolerant, rootstock, developed by Charles Valentine Riley (1843 – 1895) and others involved grafting a Vitis vinifera scion onto the roots of a resistant Vitis aestivalis or other American native species.
This is the preferred method today, because the rootstock does not interfere with the development of the wine grapes (more technically, the genes responsible for the grapes are not in the rootstock but in the scion), and it furthermore allows the customisation of the rootstock to soil and weather conditions, as well as desired vigour.
Note that we also have a grafting machine on display that would have been used in the late 19th century. See below………………
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