Valorization of wine lees for oenological interest by eco-responsible processes

Grapevine powdery mildew resistance is a key target for grape breeders and grape growers worldwide. The driver of the USDA-NIFA-SCRI VitisGen3 project is completing the pipeline from germplasm identification to QTL to candidate gene characterization to new cultivars to vineyards to consumers. This is a common thread across such projects internationally. We will discuss how our objectives and approaches leverage big data to advance this initiative, starting with genomics and computer vision phenotyping for gene discovery and genetic improvement. To manage and maintain resistances for long-term sustainability, growers will be trained through our nation-wide extension and outreach plan.

The objective of this work was to perform a colorimetric study of the copigmentation between malvidin-3-O-glucoside, one of the main anthocyanins in red wines,

The societal pressure to reduce the use of pesticides in Switzerland is steadily increasing. Viticulture is particularly in focus due to the frequent use of fungicides to combat downy and powdery mildew.

Stomatal traits determine grapevine water use, carbon supply, and water stress, which directly impact yield and berry chemistry. Breeding for stomatal traits has the strong potential to improve grapevine performance under future, drier conditions, but the trait values that breeders should target are unknown. We used a functional-structural plant model developed for grapevine (HydroShoot) to determine how stomatal traits impact canopy gas exchange, water potential, and temperature under historical and future conditions in high-quality and hot-climate California wine regions (Napa and the Central Valley). Historical climate (1990-2010) was collected from weather stations and future climate (2079-99) was projected from 4 representative climate models for California, assuming medium- and high-emissions (RCP 4.5 and 8.5). Five trait parameterizations, representing mean and extreme values for the maximum stomatal conductance (gmax) and leaf water potential threshold for stomatal closure (Ψsc), were defined from meta-analyses. Compared to mean trait values, the water-spending extremes (highest gmax or most negative Ysc) had negligible benefits for carbon gain and canopy cooling, but exacerbated vine water use and stress, for both sites and climate scenarios. These traits increased cumulative transpiration by 8 – 17%, changed cumulative carbon gain by -4 – 3%, and reduced minimum water potentials by 10 – 18%. Conversely, the water-saving extremes (lowest gmax or least negative Ψsc) strongly reduced water use and stress, but potentially compromised the carbon supply for ripening. Under RCP 8.5 conditions, these traits reduced transpiration by 22 – 35% and carbon gain by 9 – 16% and increased minimum water potentials by 20 – 28%, compared to mean values. Overall, selecting for more water-saving stomatal traits could improve water-use efficiency and avoid the detrimental effects of highly negative canopy water potentials on yield and quality, but more work is needed to evaluate whether these benefits outweigh the consequences of minor declines in carbon gain for fruit production.

French lawmakers have chosen the family-type winegrowing business as the benchmark for drafting the legal framework for winegrowing businesses and winegrowers. In france (source: msa), in 2022, there were 1,444 new winegrowers, an increase of 3% compared with 2021, representing 10% of new farm managers. The retention rate for winegrowers is 75% (up 13% on 2021), compared with 77% for all agricultural sectors (stable).