Nuove soluzioni e strumenti per l’agricoltura e la viticoltura di precisione

High quantities of chemicals are applied in the vineyard for pest and disease control. Transition towards low pesticide viticulture is a key issue to improve sustainability. Winegrowers have to gradually change their practices to engage in this transition. This work aims at analysing the pesticide use evolution during transition towards low pesticide vineyards and identify some management options mobilized by winegrowers. To understand the diversity of pathways taken towards agroecological transition, we characterized different types of pesticide use evolution.

As viticulture faces challenges such as climate change or vineyard dieback, the choice of the variety and rootstock becomes more and more crucial. To study rootstock levers in the Bordeaux region, a parcel of Cabernet Sauvignon (CS) was planted with four rootstocks in 2014. Twenty repetitions of each of the following four rootstocks were set up: 101-14 MGt, Nemadex AB, 420A MGt and Gravesac. The number of bunches, yields and pruning weights of the vine shoots were measured individually on 240 vines from 2017 to 2021. Since 2020, nitrogen status assessed by assimilable nitrogen level, hydric status assessed by δ13C and berry maturity were measured on 80 samples taken from 20 repetitions of the four rootstocks. A lower yield was measured for CS grafted onto Nemadex AB due to the lower number of bunches and the lower weight of berries. The differences between the other three rootstocks are small, but CS grafted onto 420A MGt was the most productive. The CS grafted onto Nemadex AB had the lowest pruning weight while 101-14 MGt had the highest. In 2020, δ13C showed a more moderate water stress with 101-14 MGt and 420A MGt than with Nemadex AB. Surprisingly, the Gravesac was under more stress than the 101-14 MGt. The nitrogen status in the berries was better for Nemadex AB but this was perhaps due to the significantly lower weight of the berries.Rootstock 101-14 MGt attained the highest accumulation of sugars in the berries while 420A MGt allows to preserve higher acidity. The parcel is still young which may explain some of the results. These measures must therefore be continued over the next several years to fully assess the effects of these rootstocks on the development of the vines and the quality of the production under new climatic conditions.

Astringency is a crucial sensory attribute typically described as the drying and/or puckering sensation occurring after the consumption of tannin-rich foods and beverages. In this study, thirty-seven red wines from different varieties, origins and styles were evaluated, analyzing both chemical and sensory features. Principal Component Analysis was used for dimensionality-reduction and for correlating selected chemical parameters against astringency. The results showed that tannin content was the most important chemical parameter influencing overall astringency but more clearly the dryness sub-quality, followed by pH, titratable acidity and alcohol content.

Throughout centuries of anthropocentric breeding, plants have been selectively bred to enhance their quality traits and yield, often overlooking the importance of neglected attributes, like those involved in the interactions with beneficial microorganisms. This phenomenon led to an alteration in the distribution of photosynthetic products, shifting from defence mechanisms to growth, commonly described as ‘domestication syndrome’. Addressing the losses stemming from this condition is imperative just as unravelling the concealed communication between grapevines and beneficial microorganisms.

In the conducted research, 30 yeast strains from red grape varieties were isolated from the Purcari wine center, and 28 yeast strains from red grape varieties were isolated from the Trifești wine center in the Republic of Moldova.