Terroir 2006 banner

Water relations of woody perennial plant species

Abstract

Field irrigation experiments were performed on young « Nonpareil » almond trees, mature « Bartlett » pear trees and mature « Pinot Noir » grapevines, to determine the relation of a number of alternative measures of plant water status (predawn and midday stem and leaf water potential), to a number of indices of plant physiological activity (leaf conductance, vegetative growth and fruit growth and composition). Almonds were exposed to three levels of irrigation over three years, and midday stem water potential (SWP) and leaf conductance, collected at approximately weekly intervals, is reported for the third year of the study. A strong linear increase in both leaf conductance and trunk growth occurred with increasing SWP, and this relation was consistent both within and between treatments. A similarly positive linear relation was found between SWP and fruit size in pear, with a negative relation between SWP and fruit soluble solids and fruit color. In grapevine, SWP was found to be uniform across all lower canopy positions tested (trunk, cordon and near the base of current year shoots) and positively correlated to early season shoot growth even before irrigation treatments were applied. Midday SWP was found to be more sensitive than midday leaf water potential (LWP) for detecting treatment differences over the course of the season, but both were well correlated to average seasonal leaf conductance within and between irrigation treatments. Predawn SWP and LWP were not as well correlated to average seasonal leaf conductance, but the most important factor determining midday leaf conductance was wind speed, indicating that grape leaf stomatal responses are quite sensitive to this environmental factor.

Download the PDF

DOI:

Publication date: January 12, 2022

Issue: Terroir 2006

Type: Article

Authors

Kenneth A. SHACKEL

Department of Plant Sciences/Pomology
University of California
Davis, CA, USA, 95616-8683

Contact the author

Keywords

Stem water potential, SWP, leaf water potential, LWP, predawn, midday, leaf conductance, fruit growth, fruit quality

Tags

IVES Conference Series | Terroir 2006

Citation

Related articles…

Rootstock influence on xylem embolized vulnerability and scion behavior under severe water deficit

Severe water stress events can induce cavitation damage by xylem embolism in grapevine, diminishing plant hydraulic conductance. This work aimed to determine the rootstock effects on 1) xylem embolism vulnerability to understand its function failure under severe drought, including segmentation processes from leaf to root; and 2) hydraulic conductance across water deficit and its recovery. For this purpose, two complementary experiments were performed in one-year-old Vitis vinifera cv. Tempranillo grafted onto two different rootstocks (110-Richter and SO4) under well-watered 12L pot conditions. In experiment 1, the water-stress induced xylem embolism was monitored in leaves and stems, above and below grafting-point, by using “Cavicam” for determining the percentage of embolized vessels (at P12, P50 and P88).
Read More

Genotype-environment interaction of three cultivars of vitis vinifera L. cultivated in two different environments of the Ischia island: effect on production and quality; aspects of the quality of the obtained wines

Pendant une période de trois années le comportement productif et qualitatif de trois cépages tous indigènes de la région de Campania (Italie méridionale) dans deux terroirs de l’île d’Ischia a été étudié; ceci pour obtenir quelques indications préliminaires sur le comportement productif et qualitatif des cépages et sur la qualité des vins.

Read More

IMPACT OF MUST NITROGEN DEFICIENCY ON WHITE WINE COMPOSITION DEPENDING ON GRAPE VARIETY

Nitrogen (N) nutrition of the vineyard strongly influences the must and the wine compositions. Several chemical markers present in wine (i.e., proline, succinic acid, higher alcohols and phenolic compounds) have been proposed for the cultivar Chasselas, as indicators of N deficiency in the grape must at harvest [1]. Grape genetics potentially influences the impact of N deficiency on grape composition, as well as on the concentration of potential indicators in the wine. The goal of this study was to evaluate if the che- mical markers found in Chasselas wine can be extended for other white wines to indicate N deficiency in the grape must.

Read More

An excessive leaf-fruit ratio reduces the yeast assimilable nitrogen in the must

Yeast assimilable nitrogen (YAN) in the grape must is a key variable for wine quality as a source of aroma precursors. In a situation of YAN deficiency, a foliar urea application upon the vine at veraison enhances YAN concentration and facilitates must fermentation. In 2013, Agroscope investigated the impact of leaf-fruit ratio on the nitrogen (N) assimilation and partitioning in grapevine Vitis vinifera cv. Chasselas following foliar-urea application with the aim of improving its efficiency on the YAN concentration.

Read More

Il sistema vigneto del Lago di Bolsena: caratterizzazione della produzione di Cannaiola di Marta

Il comprensorio del Lago di Bolsena (VT) è un territorio ad elevata vocazione vitivinicola in cui il paesaggio della vite storicamente persiste e caratterizza la fisionomia dei luoghi. Qui gli agroecosistemi viticoli possiedono una valenza ecologico-ambientale, storico-culturale ed economica di rilievo.

Read More