“Compost Application in the Vineyard: Effects on Soil Nutrition and Compaction”

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are emitted by nearly all plant organs of the plants, including leaves. They play a key role in the communication with other organisms, therefore they are involved in plant defence against phytopathogens. In this study VOCs from grapevine leaves of two varieties of Vitis vinifera infected by Erysiphe necator were analysed. The varieties were selected based on their susceptibility to pathogen, Kishmish Vatkana has the Ren1 resistance gene and Zamarrica showed high susceptibility in previous trials.

Grapevine varieties from South-America, commonly known as criollas, originated because of the natural crossbreeding of grapevine varieties brought by the Spaniards. The objective of this work was to evaluate the potential of some varieties to produce sparkling wines considering the effect of lees contact time. The following varieties were used: Moscatel Rosado, Criolla Chica, Pedro Gimenez, Blanca Oval, Canelón, and the European variety Chardonnay (control), planted in the ampelographic collection of EEA Mendoza INTA (Argentina). Pilot-scale vinifications were carried out to obtain the base wines, in 20 L glass containers. The second fermentation was performed through the traditional method.

Plant diseases are a major obstacle to crop production. The main approaches to battle plant diseases, consist of synthetic chemicals to attack infecting pathogens. However, concerns are increasing about the effects of chemicals in the environment, leading to an increase in the use of biocontrol agents (BCAs), due to their assets, such as, antagonism, and competition. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that the introduction of Bacillus subtilis PTA-271 (Bs PTA-271) and Trichoderma atroviride SC1 (Ta SC1) produce distinctive modifications in the composition and network structure of the grapevine rhizosphere microbial community, as well as grapevine induced defenses.

Grapevines have traditionally been grown in semi-arid areas, but viticulture is now compromised by climate change. Therefore, it is necessary to implement environmentally friendly viticulture practices to adapt grapevines to current climatic conditions. In this context, organic mulches offer many benefits, such as reduced soil erosion and increased organic matter, soil water content and crop productivity. However, these practices must not compromise grape and wine quality. Therefore, the objective of this study was to evaluate the effect on wine physicochemical and phenolic composition and sensorial properties of different soil management practices on the vine row. Over four years, five soil treatments were examined in two different vineyards.

In the context of climate change with increasing evaporative demand, understanding the water use behavior of different grapevine cultivars is of critical importance. Carbon isotope discrimination (δ13C) measurements in wine provide a precise and integrated assessment of the water status of the vines during the sugar accumulation period in grape berries. When collected over multiple vintages on different cultivars, δ13C measurements can also provide insights into the effects of genotype on water use efficiency.