Chapter 5 - The Growing Environment Flashcards
Name the 5 things a vine needs
Heat, sunlight, water, nutrients and carbon dioxide
Describe the vine’s growth cycle
In winter: dormant, no green parts
Begin spring: budburst, new shoots grow
Late spring: flowers and grapes form (fruitset)
Summer: grapes grow (still hard, acidic, green, no sugar
Late summer, early autumn: grapes ripen
Autumn: harvest, end of growing season
Late autumn: leaves fall
What is veraison and when does it occur?
Grapes change colour and start to ripen. Early autumn.
What is photosynthesis
The process through which the plant converts carbon dioxide and water into glucose with the help of sunlight
What is the temperature limit for a vine to grow?
10 C, below that it lies dormant (winter)
Which part of the cycle is heat very important?
Growing season. The plant needs lots of heat for flowering, fruitset and ripening
Do all vines have the same need for heat?
No, some varieties can thrive under lower temperatures than others.
Riesling grows very in cool regions, where Grenache needs a lot of heat.
Name 6 factors affecting heat for vines
Latitude Altitude Ocean currents Fog Soil Aspect
What is the best Latitude for vine growing?
Between 30 and 50 degrees (north and south of the equator)
Name 2 cooling ocean currants, and the areas they affect
The Humbolt Current (Chile) Benguela Current (South Africa)
Name a warming ocean currant and the area it affects
The Gulf stream for NW-Europe
Name 2 area’s where fog plays an important role
California and Cassablanca Valley in Chile
What is aspect and how does is affect heat
The direction a slope faces. Vineyards that face the equator get more sunlight and thus more heat.
Where is aspect especially important?
In cool climates where every bit of heat is needed for ripening.
What factor enhances the effect of the correct aspect?
How steep a slope is. The steeper the better.
What is continentality?
The temperature difference between the hottest months and the coldest months
How do large bodies of water influence continentality?
Since water heats up and cools down more slowly than land, they can have a heating/cooling effect on the surrounding air and thus landmass.
So continentality is lower near large bodies of water
What is the effect of continentality?
It determines the length of the growing season, and with that the total amount of heat available to a vine
What is the diurnal range?
The temperature difference between day and night
What is the impact of diurnal range?
Cool nights help preserve acidity and aroma. Warm nights accelerate ripening
Name 2 influences on diurnal range
Bodies of water can hold warmth during the night and provide cooling breezes during the day
Cloud cover can hold onto warmth during the night and cover from sun during the day
At which temperature can a vine be damages or even kiled?
-20c
What is earthing up?
The process of protecting the graft from frost by burrying it with earth. The graft is the most sensitive part of the vine