The role of vine trunk height in delaying grape ripening: insights for viticultural adaptation strategies

This article explores the contemporary culture of wine consumption in Ukraine through the lens of social, economic, and cultural transformations triggered by European integration, the COVID-19 pandemic, and the full-scale war since 2022.

Viticulture and grapevine breeding programs have to face and adapt to the rapidly changing growing conditions due to the ongoing climate change, the scarcity of resources and the demand for sustainability within the whole value chain of wine production. In times of highly effective and cost-efficient genotyping technologies routinely applied in plant research and breeding, the need for comparable high-speed and high-resolution phenotyping tools has increased substantially. The disciplines of grapevine research, breeding and precision viticulture picked up this demand – mostly independent from each other – by the development, validation and establishment of different sensor technologies in order to extend management strategies or to transform labor-intensive and expensive phenotyping.

Germicidal ultraviolet-C (UV-C) light has shown promising results for suppression of several plant-pathogenic microorganims, including Erysiphe necator, which attacks grapevine. In Washington State the majority of winegrape production is in a semi-arid steppe environment, with historically low powdery mildew disease pressure, making it a promising area to deploy UV-C as a disease management tool. Trials focusing on UVC application timing and frequency will assist in developing regionally-appropriate application recommendations for eastern Washington State.

Growing fungus-tolerant cultivars (PIWIs) reduces the need of fungicide use by 50-80 %. PIWIs have the potential to address climate change adaptation and mitigation simultaneously.

Global warming is shifting vine phenology, resulting in a decoupling of phenolic and technological berry ripening. This is altering the balance of fruit traits, which is key relevance to winegrowers