Terroir 2010 banner
IVES 9 IVES Conference Series 9 Long-term vineyard sustainability index

Long-term vineyard sustainability index

Abstract

The impact of viticulture on soil can be determined by comparing the biophysical properties that represent soil health at a particular site and depth with those same properties in soil considered to represent the ‘pre-vineyard’ state (the headland). Information gathered by this method shows the changes in soil properties following the change to viticulture depend on individual vineyard management and environment. Relative changes can be used for comparisons within regions. Our research took place over three years on soils of vineyards of different ages and under different management, in both the Awatere and the Wairau Valleys in Marlborough, New Zealand. Soil properties investigated were: pH (optimal value 5.5-7.0); organic carbon (OC, 3-5%); carbon/nitrogen ratio (C/N,10-20); bulk density (BD, 0.9-1.3 t/m3); macro-porosity (MP, 8-30%); microbial biomass (MB-C, g C/m2 in 15 cm of soil); basal respiration (BR-C, 1.5-4.5 g CO2-C/m2/day), respiration quotient (qCO2, 0.5-1.5 mg CO2-C/g MB-C) and kg carbon/m2 for 15 cm of soil (4.5-9.0 kg-C). Objective descriptions of vineyard soil quality would assist growers to apply and monitor sustainable vineyard management practices. This data set indicates changes in sustainability that can be expected after a change of land-use to grape growing.
Under average vineyard management, soil carbon declined rapidly during the first few years but reached a plateau after two or more years. Soil depth was shown to be influential, with soils below 15 cm much less affected by land use changes, but scoring lower for all soil carbon parameters (except for qCO2). Soils at this depth also scored lower for soil physical properties; they generally had a very high BD, low MP and low pH. These trends for the 15-30 cm layer are typical soil properties – they don’t imply that soil depth is a factor in sustainability indices per se.
The high variability and generally reduced levels of under-vine soil carbon compared with headland soil carbon, suggest the need to increase vineyard soil carbon content and thereby potentially sequestrate carbon.

DOI:

Publication date: December 3, 2021

Issue: Terroir 2010

Type: Article

Authors

Marc Greven (1), Victoria Raw (1), Colin Gray (2), Markus Deurer (3), Bruce West (1), Claire Grose (1)

(1) The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited, Marlborough, PO Box 845, Blenheim 7240,
New Zealand
(2) Marlborough District Council, 15 Seymour Street, Blenheim 7201, New Zealand
(3) The New Zealand Institute for Plant & Food Research Limited, Private Bag 11600, Palmerston North 4442,
New Zealand

Contact the author

Keywords

vineyard, grape, soil biophysical properties, organic carbon, microbial biomass, basal respiration, macro-porosity

Tags

IVES Conference Series | Terroir 2010

Citation

Related articles…

In vitro tissue culture as a tool for Croatian grapevine germplasm management

In vitro culture makes it possible to carry out specific studies that would not be possible with whole plants grown in the field or in a greenhouse. Cryopreservation allows long-term preservation without metabolic changes in the plant material and cryotherapy can be efficient in virus elimination, which is a major scientific challenge. The preculture media of cryopreservation protocols were evaluated on three Croatian grape varieties with different antioxidants (salicylic acid, ascorbic acid and glutathione). The highest growth in vitro was achieved on the medium with the addition of glutathione and the lowest with the addition of salicylic acid.

Characterization of four Chenin Blanc-rootstock combinations to assess grapevine adaptability to water constraint

Climate change impacts water availability for agriculture, notably in semi-arid regions like South Africa, necessitating research on cultivar and rootstock adaptability to water constraints. To evaluate the performance (vegetative and reproductive) of different Chenin Blanc-rootstock combinations to the two water regimes, a field experiment was established in a model vineyard at Stellenbosch University, South Africa. Chenin Blanc vines grafted onto four different rootstocks (110Richter, 99Richter, 1103Paulsen and US 8-7) were planted in 2020. The vines are managed under two contrasting water conditions – dryland and irrigated (industry norm).

CHARACTERIZATION AND ANTIBACTERIAL ACTIVITY OF A POLYPHENOLIC EXTRACT OBTAINED BY GREEN SUPERCRITICAL CO₂ EXTRACTION FROM RED GRAPE POMACE

Upgrading wine industry solid wastes is considered as one of the main strategies to support the circular economy. Red grape pomaces constitute a rich source of polyphenols, which have been shown to possess antioxidant properties and to provide benefits for human and animal health. The objective of this work was to obtain and characterise polyphenolic extracts from red grape pomaces via green supercritical CO₂ extraction using ethanol as a co-solvent, and to evaluate their antibacterial activity against susceptible and multidrug-resistant Escherichia coli strains of animal intestinal origin.

NIR based sensometric approach for consumer preference evaluation

Climate change has had a global impact on grape production, and as a result, developing table grape varieties that can withstand climate-related threats has become a significant goal. However, it is equally important to ensure that these new grape varieties meet the preferences of consumers. To achieve this goal, a procedure has been developed that combines sensory analysis with spectroscopic data collected in the NIR region. Each sample was analyzed using both traditional analytical techniques and non-destructive NIR spectroscopy.

The importance of the physicochemical composition of wine on the score awarded in an official contest

The quality of wine is difficult to define. This is most certainly accredited to everyone´s different perception of quality. Some of the indicators of high-quality wines are color complexity and balance. Color is one of the most crucial attributes of quality, not only for the obvious implications for their perception but also because they are indicators of other aspects related to its aroma and taste.