fanleaf

[ fan-leef ]

noun

1. a disease of grapevines, characterized by the deformation of leaves into a fanlike shape and caused by a virus transmitted in grafting.

Word History and Origins

Origin of fanleaf¹

fan ¹ + leaf

Example Sentences

On the other is a battalion of super-educated PhD's at France's National Institute for Agricultural Research, scientists trying to discover whether genetic manipulation of grape vines might help protect against fanleaf virus, a disease found in up to a third of the world's vineyards.

From Washington Post

The main battleground is a little plot behind the institute's Colmar laboratory, where 500 normal grapevines have been planted and, in their midst, 70 diseased plants were topped this week with a genetically modified graft designed to shield against fanleaf virus and its transmission by an earthworm whose idea of a good meal is to burrow from vine to vine, munching on the roots.

From Washington Post