Green berries on Gewürztraminer (Vitis vinifera L.) in South Tyrol (Italy)

Climate change will require the adaptation of agricultural systems and among the different means of adaptation, changing plant material is a promising strategy. In viticulture, different levels of diversity are currently exploited: clonal and varietal diversity for rootstocks and scions. A huge quantity of research aims to evaluate different genotypes in different environmental conditions to identify which ones are the best adapted and the most tolerant to future environmental conditions.

Aims: The aims of this study were (1) to measure the vertical temperature gradient in the vine canopy in parcels with different vineyard floor management practices and (2) to analyze the factors influencing this gradient. The objective was to investigate whether the increase of trunk height could be an adaptation strategy to reduce air temperature in the bunch zone in a context of climate change. 

In recent years several strategies have been proposed to cope with the effect of climate change on grape berry quality but only a few studies have dealt with the influence of management practices implemented in the field (e.g. irrigation,summer pruning, etc.), on the evolution of wines over time. 

Aim: To identify the sensory attributes responsible for the typicity of Cabernet Sauvignon wines from three Australian Geographical Indications (GIs) and to explore consumer purchase behaviour and preference with regard to regional wines.

Majority of California’s vineyards rely on supplemental irrigation to overcome abiotic stressors. In the context of climate change, increases in growing season temperatures and crop evapotranspiration pose a risk to adaptation of viticulture to climate change. Vineyard cover crops may mitigate soil erosion and preserve water resources; but there is a lack of information on how they contribute to vineyard resiliency under tillage systems. The aim of this study was to identify the optimum combination of cover crop sand tillage without adversely affecting productivity while preserving plant water status. Two experiments in two contrasting climatic regions were conducted with two cover crops, including a permanent short stature grass (P. bulbosa hybrid), barley (Hordeum spp), and resident vegetation under till vs. no-till systems in a Ruby Cabernet (V. vinifera spp.) (Fresno) and a Cabernet Sauvingon (Napa) vineyard. Results indicated that permanent grass under no-till preserved plant available water until E-L stage 17. Consequently, net carbon assimilation of the permanent grass under no-till system was enhanced compared to those with barley and resident vegetation. On the other hand, the barley under no-till system reduced grapevine net carbon assimilation during berry ripening that led to lower content of nonstructural carbohydrates in shoots at dormancy. Components of yield and berry composition including flavonoid profile at either site were not adversely affected by factors studied. Switching to a permanent cover crop under a no-till system also provided a 9% and 3% benefit in cultural practices costs in Fresno and Napa, respectively. The results of this work provides fundamental information to growers in preserving resiliency of vineyard systems in hot and warm climate regions under context of climate change.