Terroir 2004 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 Climatic zoning of viticultural production periods over the year in the tropical zone: application of the methodology of the Géoviticulture MCC system

Climatic zoning of viticultural production periods over the year in the tropical zone: application of the methodology of the Géoviticulture MCC system

Abstract

L’objectif de cette recherche est le zonage climatique des périodes viticoles de l’année dans la Vallée du São Francisco, région brésilienne productrice de vins située en climat tropical semi-aride. Dans cette région, la production peut être échelonnée sur tous les mois de l’année. La région est placée sur climat viticole à variabilité intra-annuelle, qui correspond aux régions qui, sur des conditions climatiques naturelles, changent de classe de climat viticole en fonction de la période de l’année au cours de laquelle le raisin peut être produit. La méthodologie adoptée est celle du Système de Classification Climatique Multicritères Géoviticole (Système CCM Géoviticole) (Tonietto & Carbonneau, 2004), en utilisant les fonctionnalités de modulation des indices (indices homologues appliqués sur la phénologie locale des cépages). Les indices climatiques viticoles du Système (thermique, nycthermique et hydrique) ont été adaptés aux conditions biologiques du cépage Syrah de la région, qui présente un cycle moyen débourrement-récolte (d-r) de 4 mois. L’étude utilise une base de données climatiques journalières de la période 1976-2002, avec la simulation de 36 récoltes théoriques par an (une récolte théorique a chaque décade), soit un totale de 972 sur l’ensemble de la période étudiée. Ainsi, l’Indice Héliothermique (IH12d) à été calculé sur 4 mois tout au long de l’année. L’Indice de Fraîcheur des Nuits (IF3d) a été calculé sur les 3 décades précédentes la date théorique de récolte (période de maturation). La quantité de pluie en période de maturation (P3d) a également été prise en compte en fonction des effets sur l’incidence de pourriture. Les résultats ont permis de caractériser 3 périodes climatiques viticoles distincts dans l’année : Période “a” – conditions thermiques moins chaudes pendant le cycle d-r pour l’IH12d, conditions nycthermiques (IF3d) plus fraîches et très sec (P3d) en période de maturation ; Période “b” – climat intermédiaire entre la période “a” et “c” pour l’IF3d et l’IH12d et sec à très sec pour P3d (la période “b” peut être subdivisée en 2 sous-périodes : l’une que s’initie en sortant de la période chaude et humide “c”, avec une réserve hydrique utile au niveau du sol, et évolue avec la chute des températures ; et l’autre sous-période qui débute avec l’augmentation des températures et que finie juste avant la rentrée de la période humide “c”) ; Période “c” – Le plus chaud pour l’IF3d et l’IH12d et sub-humide pour P3d. Les résultats montrent que la production de raisin de cuve pour un même cépage présente des caractéristiques potentielles distinctes en fonction des périodes de production “a”, “b” et “c”. D’une façon générale, la période “c” est la plus susceptible a une maturité du raisin incomplète en fonction du risque de pourriture (pluie et température élevée), qui peuvent amener à une récolte avant la complète maturation du raisin. Déjà les périodes “a” et “b” sont les plus aptes a une bonne maturation du raisin. La période “a” est celle qui présente le moindre risque de pluie et des températures les plus fraîches, avec la possibilité du contrôle total de la disponibilité hydrique du sol par l’irrigation. La probabilité d’occurrence des indices climatiques à été caractérisé par décade et par quartile comme information d’aide à la décision (risque ou avantages) des périodes de production. Des études complémentaires, notamment l’estimation de la réserve hydrique potentielle (Indice de Sécheresse – IS) du sol seront développées. On peut conclure que le concept de climat viticole à variabilité intra-annuelle du Système CCM Géoviticole peut être utilisé comme élément de zonage pour l’établissement, dans un même vignoble, des périodes de l’année avec un potentiel climatique supérieur de production de raisin de cuve. Ce critère climatique va être utilisé dans le zonage intégré de la région, notamment avec les facteurs édaphiques.

The objective of this research is the viticultural climatic zoning of the production periods over the year in the São Francisco Valley, a Brazilian grape-growing region located in semi-arid tropical climate. In this region, the production can be spread over all months of the year. The region is situated in climate with intra-annual variability, that corresponds to the regions which, under natural climatic conditions, change the class of viticultural climate according to the period of the year during which the grape is produced. The methodology adopted is that of the Géoviticulture Multicriteria Climatic Classification System (Géoviticulture MCC System) (Tonietto & Carbonneau, 2004), employing the modulation functions of the indices. The viticultural climatic indices of the System have been adapted to the biological conditions of the Syrah variety, which has an average cycle of 4 months from bud burst to harvest (d-r) in the region. The study is based on a daily climate database from 1976 through 2002, simulating 36 theoretic harvests per year (one theoretic harvest at every ten 10 days), amounting to a total of 972 harvests in the whole period covered by the study. In this way, the Heliothermal Index (HI12d) was calculated over 4 months throughout the year. The Cool Night Index (IF3d) was calculated over the 30 days that preceded the theoretic harvest (maturation period). The amount of rain (P3d) in the maturation period was equally been taken into account according to the potential effect of the incidence of bunch rotting. The results have allowed to distinguish 3 climatic viticultural periods during the year: Period “a” – less warm during d-r cycle (IH12d) and for night temperatures (IF3d) and very dry (P3d); Period “b” – intermediate climate between “a” and “c” period for IF3d and IH12d and dry to very dry for P3d (the period “b” can be subdivided into 2 sub-periods: one which starts with the end of the warm and sub-humid period “c”, with a useful water reserve of the soil, and evolves with the fall of the temperatures, and another which starts with the increase of the temperatures and finishes before the sub-humid period “c” returns); Period “c” – the warmest for the IH12d and IF3d, and sub-humid for P3d. The obtained results allow defining the periods “a” and “b”, even with different climatic viticultural potential, as being the most favorable for the production of grapes for wine. The probability of occurrence of the values of the climatic indices (climatic risk or advantages) was characterized at a ten-day level throughout the year. Other index to complement the study will be included, especially the potential water balance of the soil (dryness index – IS). It can be concluded that the concept of the viticultural climate with intra-annual variability of the Géovitivulture MCC System can be used as a zoning element for establishing, in the same vineyard, periods of the year with a higher climatic potential for the production of quality grapes for wine. This climatic criterion will be used in the integrated zoning of the region, especially with the edaphic factors.

Download the PDF

DOI:

Publication date: January 12, 2022

Issue: Terroir 2004

Type: Article

Authors

J. Tonietto (1) and A.H. de C. Teixeira (2)

(1) Embrapa – Centre National de Recherche de la Vigne et du Vin – Cnpuv, Rua Livramento, 515 ; 95700-000 – Bento Gonçalves, Brésil
(2) Embrapa – Centre de Recherche du Tropique Semi-Aride – Cpatsa

Contact the author

; 

Keywords

Tropical, intertropical, vin, raisin, qualité, climat avec variabilité intra-annuelle, zonage climatique, Système CCM Géoviticole 

Tags

IVES Conference Series | Terroir 2004

Citation

Related articles…

Effects of organic mulches on the soil environment and yield of grapevine

Farming management practices aiming at conserving soil moisture have been developed in arid and semiarid-areas facing water scarcity problems. Organic mulching is an effective method to manipulate the crop-growing microclimate increasing crop yield by controlling soil temperature, and retaining soil moisture by reducing soil evaporation. In this sense, the effectiveness of different organic mulching materials (straw mulch and grapevine pruning debris) applied within the row of a vineyard was evaluated on the soil and on the vine in a Tempranillo vineyard located in La Rioja (Spain). Organic mulches were compared with a traditional bare soil management technique (based on the use of herbicides to avoid weed incidence). Mulching coverages favourably influenced the soil water retention throughout all the grapevine vegetative cycle. However, the soil-moisture variation was not the same under different mulching materials, being the straw mulch (SM) the one that retained more water in comparison with grapevine pruning debris (GPD) based-cover. The changes of soil moisture in the upper surface layer (0–10 cm) were highly dynamic, probably due to water vapour fluxes across the soil-atmospheric interface. However, both, SM and GPD reduced these fluctuations as compared with bare soils. A similar trend occurred with soil temperature. Both organic mulches altered soil temperature in comparison with bare soil by reducing soil temperature in summer and raising it in winter. Moreover, the same buffering effect for the temperature on the covered soil also remains in the deeper layers. To conclude, we could see that organic mulching had a positive impact on soil-moisture storage and soil temperature and the extent of this effect depends on the type of mulching materials. These changes led to higher rates of photosynthesis and stomatal conductivity compared to bare soils, also favouring crop growth and grape yields.

Read More

Copper contamination in vineyard soils of Bordeaux: spatial risk assessment for the replanting of vines and crops

Copper (Cu) is widely and historically used in viticulture as a fungicide against mildew. Cu has a strong affinity for soil organic matter and accumulates in topsoil horizons. Thus, Cu may negatively affect soil organisms and plants, consequently reducing soil fertility and productivity. The Bordeaux vineyards have the largest vineyard surfaces (26%) within French controlled appellation and a great proportion of French wine production (around 5 million hl per year). Considering the local context of vineyard surfaces decreasing (vine uprooting) and possible new crop plantation, the issue of Cu potential toxicity rises. Therefore, the aims of this work are firstly to evaluate the Cu contamination in vineyard soils of Bordeaux, secondly to produce a risk assessment map for new vine or crop plantation. We used soil analyses from several local studies to build a database with 4496 soil horizon samples. The database was enhanced by means of pedotransfer functions in order to estimate the bioaccessible (EDTA-extractable) Cu in soils of samples without measurements. From this database, 1797 georeferenced samples with CuEDTA concentrations in the topsoil (0-50 cm depth) were used for kriging interpolation in order to produce the spatial distribution map of CuEDTA in vineyard soils. Then, the spatial distribution of Cu was crossed with vine uprooting surfaces and municipality boundaries. CuEDTAconcentrations ranged from 0.52 to 459 mg/kg and showed clear anomalies. Our results from spatial analysis showed that almost 50% of vineyard soil surfaces have CuEDTA concentrations higher than 30 mg/kg (moderate risk for new plantation) and 20% with concentrations higher than 50 mg/kg (high risk for new plantation). A decision-support map based on municipalities was realised to provide a simple tool to stakeholders concerned by land use management.

Read More

Different soil types and relief influence the quality of Merlot grapes in a relatively small area in the Vipava Valley (Slovenia) in relation to the vine water status

Besides location and microclimatic conditions, soil plays an important role in the quality of grapes and wine. Soil properties influence…

Read More

Climate change impacts on Douro Region viticulture and adaptation measures

Climate has a significant impact in the success of any agricultural system, with a direct influence on the crops suitability to a given region, interfering on yield and quality and also with the economic sustainability of the productive activity. In the Douro Demarcated Region (RDD), as in most regions of the Mediterranean climate, the scarce precipitation (33% has less than 600 mm per year), and your high variability, associated with high rates of evapotranspiration during the summer, is usually one of the fundamental factors that limit the grapevine development, as well as the production and quality of the harvest. Thus, facing the scenario in temperature changes for the next decades (1.5-2.5°C) and confirming the predictions of precipitation decreases and/or great variability in the occurrence of heat waves and intense rainfall, the consequences for slope stability in mountain viticulture and sustainability of all operations involved, are risks to be taken into account. In this way, a deepest and sustained knowledge regarding the adaptation measures to adverse environmental conditions is of a crucial importance, enabling a more efficient adaptation of plant growth conditions and the optimization of production and quality of the grapevines. The development of this work, carried out in two commercial vineyards, one located in Soutelo do Douro, São João da Pesqueira, Cima Corgo sub-region, and another located in Numão, Vila Nova de Foz Côa, Douro Superior sub-region, it seeks to establish a relationship between climatic elements and physiological, productive and qualitative parameters, as well as to evaluate the effectiveness of adaptation measures, including different types of deficit irrigation (2002-2019) and the application of shading nets (2019-2020) in the physiological, viticultural and oenological behavior in the Touriga Nacional and Moscatel Galego Branco varieties, respectively. The results showed that the application of deficit irrigation allowed to significantly reduce the impact of the adverse weather conditions at key moments in the development of the grapevine, particularly in the period immediately before veráison and maturation, reducing the negative effects on the physiological processes and productivity, without compromise the must quality parameters. On the other hand, the application of shading nets significantly reduced de leaves temperature, allowing to increase the water potential, stomatal conductance and photosynthetic rate of grapes, which was reflected in the yield increase in the 2nd year of the study. For the maturation indicators, higher levels of total acidity, malic acid and assimilable nitrogen were obtained. The last measure presents a huge potential, being essential to carry out more years of trials to obtain stronger conclusions in terms of production parameters, but also in characteristics as important as the grape ripening components and the organoleptic characteristics of wines.

Read More

Modulation of berry composition by different vineyard management practices

High concentration of sugars in grapes and alcohol in wines is one of the consequences of climate change on viticulture production in several wine-growing regions. In order to investigate the possibilities of adaptation of vineyard management practices aimed to reduce the accumulation of sugar during the maturation phase without reducing the accumulation of anthocyanins in grapes, a study with severe shoot trimming, shoot thinning, cluster thinning and date of harvest was conducted on Merlot variety in Istria region (Croatia), under the Mediterranean climate. Four factors which may affect grape maturation and its composition at harvest were investigated in a two-years experiment; severe shoot trimming applied at veraison when >80% of berries changed colour (in comparison to untreated control), shoot thinning (0 and 30%), cluster thinning (0 and 30%), and the date of harvest (early and standard harvest dates). Shoot thinning had no significant impact on berry composition, despite the obtained reduction in yield per vine. Lower Brix in grapes were obtained with earlier harvest date and if no cluster thinning was applied, although at the same time a reduction in the concentration of anthocyanins in berries was observed in these treatments. On the other hand, if severe shoot trimming was applied when >80% of berries changed colour, a reduction of Brix was obtained without a negative impact on berry anthocyanins concentration. We conclude that in cases when undesirably high sugar concentrations at harvest are expected, severe shoot trimming at 80% veraison may effectively be used in order to obtain moderate sugar concentration in berries together with the adequate phenolic composition.

Read More