Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

WSET 4 > D6: Managing Nutrients and Water > Flashcards

D6: Managing Nutrients and Water Flashcards

You may prefer our related Brainscape-certified flashcards:
WSET ® Level 1 Wine flashcards WSET ® Level 2 Wine flashcards WSET ® Level 3 Wine flashcards WSET ® Level 2 Spirits flashcards WSET ® Level 1 Spirits flashcards WSET ® Level 3 Spirits flashcards WSET® Level 4 Wine flashcards
1
Q

Define the term ‘soil health’

A
  • ability of soil to support vine, enabling it to grow and produce fruit

Includes:

  • structure of soil
  • amount of organic matter and humus in soil
  • number of living organisms in soil
  • total amount of available nutrients that a vine needs to grow
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

What is the impact of poor soil health?

A
  • can cause problems with availability and uptake of nutrients and water from soil
  • impacts on vine quality and ripening
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

What three nutrients does the soil need?

A
  • nitrogen
  • phosphorous
  • potassium

Does need some other nutrients but these are the three main ones

  • direct application
  • promotes biological activity and soil structure
  • mgmt of weeds/plants which compete for nutrients
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

What are the benefits of removing weeds?

A
  • ‘bare, moist soils’ absorb heat during the day and release heat at night to reduce risk of frost
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

What are the negatives of weeds?

A
  • can increase frost risk

- make it difficult for machinery to get through vineyards

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

When might fertiliser be used, and what are the pros and cons of it?

A
  • may be added before planting to help growth of young vines
  • corrects nutrient deficiencies
  • can lead to excess vigour and an unbalanced vine
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

What are the two types of fertiliser?

A
  • organic

- mineral

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

What is organic fertiliser?

A
  • fresh, composted or animal material (e.g. manure or slurry)
  • green manure = cover crops mown into soil to decompose

POSITIVES

  • slow distribution of nutrients to vine
  • cheap and free
  • good for soil structure and water retention
  • give nutrition for soil organisms

NEGATIVES

  • bulky and expensive to transport and spread
  • need incorporating into soil so labour intensive
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

What is mineral fertiliser?

A
  • extracted from ground or chemically manufactured
  • single or several nutrients

POSITIVES

  • can be tailored to vine needs
  • more concentrated, cheaper to transport and distribute

NEGATIVES

  • no benefit for soil organisms
  • does not improve soil structure
  • more expensive than organic fertiliser
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

What is Cultivation, and what are the benefits and negatives?

A
  • ploughing soil to cut or distribute weeds root system

POSITIVES

  • doesn’t use chemicals
  • can be biodynamic and organic
  • fertiliser enabler

NEGATIVES

  • damage soil structure and destruction of habitats
  • costly as requires labour and machinery
  • buries seeds and therefore encourages weeds to grow back
  • can increase vine vigour too much
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

Define Herbicides and name three types which are typically used

A
  • chemical sprays which kill weeds

PRE-EMERGENCE HERBICIDES

  • sprayed before weeds established
  • absorbed by weeds roots
  • inhibit germination of young seedlings

CONTACT HERBICIDES
- sprayed on established weeds - kill green parts of weeds they contact

SYSTEMIC HERBICIDES

  • sprayed on established weeds
  • taken in by leaves
  • herbicide travels up and down weed in sap and kills whole plant
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

What are the positives and negatives of using herbicides?

A

POSITIVES

  • cheap
  • high effective
  • less damaging to soil in terms of cultivation

NEGATIVES

  • can be damaging to operator, consumer, environment etc
  • not good for vineyard ecosystems
  • weeds can become resistant (e.g. GLYPHOSATE in South Africa - overused and now ryegrass is resistant)
  • can increase vine vigour too much (no competition for water or nutrients)

*not allowed in organic or biodynamic viticulture

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

What are the positives and negatives of ‘animal grazing’

A

POSITIVES

  • doesn’t use chemicals
  • organic and biodynamic
  • manure producing
  • meat for humans

NEGATIVES

  • risk to vines so need to be trained high
  • labour intensive
  • susceptible to vineyard pesticides
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

What are COVER CROPS and what are the positives and negatives of cover crops?

A
  • plants which are specifically planted that have a benefit to the vineyard
  • legumes (beans, clover)
  • cereals (ryegrass, oats)
  • all matched to the vineyards needs
  • can use natural vegetation but don’t have that level of control

POSITIVES

  • suppress weeds
  • no chemicals
  • green manure key for fertilisation
  • improve soil structure
  • compete for water and nutrients (requires careful management so don’t compete at key points in vine cycle)
  • manage soil erosion
  • enhance biodiversity and is both organic and biodynamic
  • give surface to drive on

NEGATIVES

  • difficult to mow under rows so has time and labour implications
  • can’t use on steep slopes
  • need to be careful that doesn’t compete for all the nutrients and water as can have a detrimental affect on the vine
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

What is mulching and what are the positives and negatives?

A
  • spreading of matter on vineyard soil to suppress growth of weeds

POSITIVES

  • biodegradable (straw or bark chips)
  • provide nutrients for vine and humus
  • biodynamic/organic/non-chemical
  • reduces water evap from soil

NEGATIVES

  • bulky and expensive to transport and spread
  • need thick layer to be effective
  • can increase vigour too much as no competition for water or nutrients
How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

What impact does the amount and timing of irrigation have on vine cycle?

A
  • significant impact

- particularly on growth and ripeness

17
Q

Irrigation

A
  • should be considered as part of design of vineyard
  • better to do initially as laying pipes later can be disruptive
  • some EU GIs do NOT permit irrigation (or only in some circumstances)
  • water use tightly regulated in many countries
18
Q

What are four of the possible water sources for a vineyard?

A
  • river
  • lake
  • borehole
  • reservoir
19
Q

How can you improve efficiency of water use?

A
  • water-efficient irrigation systems and techniques
  • drought-tolerant grapes (e.g. grenache) and rootstocks (e.g. 140R)
  • reducing evaporation (e.g. through mulching)
  • reducing competition (e.g. removing weeds)
  • increasing humus levels to improve retention
  • promoting growth of deep roots
20
Q

Name three countries which have recently had water shortages

A
  • Australia
  • California
  • South Africa
21
Q

Why is water quality so important?

A
  • need to filter before it is used or else can block up sprinkler systems
  • high salinity (e.g in Australia) can increase salt in soil and makes it difficult for vine roots to take up water so vine dehydrates, wilts and dies
    • big issue for drop irrigation as salt accumulates at roots rather than being washed deeper into soils like in flood
22
Q

What are the four different types of irrigation systems?

A
  • drip
  • flood
  • channel irrigation
  • overhead sprinklers
23
Q

DRIP IRRIGATION

A
  • most common
  • drippers positioned far enough away from vines to encourage roots to grow and seek out water

POSITIVES

  • economic use of water
  • control water supply to individual rows or blocks
  • can supply fertiliser (liquid) - called fertigation
  • can be used on slopes

NEGATIVES

  • expensive to install
  • need clean water or else drippers become blocked
  • can be blocked by algae, bacteria or minerals/salts
  • can’t be used for frost protection
24
Q

FLOOD IRRIGATION

A
  • water stored behind sluice and floods vineyard at scheduled time

POSITIVES
- cheap to install and maintain

NEGATIVES

  • inefficient as vine doesn’t take up a lot
  • only use on flat/gentle slopes
25
Q

CHANNEL IRRIGATION

A
  • water flows down furrows dug between vine rows
  • used in Argentina (lots of water from Andes)
  • not suitable if only limited supply of water
26
Q

OVERHEAD SPRINKLERS

A
  • showers water over vineyard
  • expensive to install and maintain as need high water pressure
  • use lots of water (vs drip)
  • can be used as frost protection
27
Q

Why would you want to put the vine under water stress?

A
  • good between fruit set and veraison

- encourages development and ripening

28
Q

What is ‘regulated deficit irrigation’ (RDI)?

A
  • timing and regulating irrigation so vine is mildly stressed for specific time in growing season
  • between fruit set and veraison to limit shoot growth and encourage grape development
  • uses dripper system
  • best in regions with dry growing season and sandy/loam soils that dry out and can be rewetted quickly

POSITIVES

  • good to help control vine growth and grape development
  • uses less water
  • good for black grapes as reduces grape size, increases proportion of skin to juice and increases concentration of anthocyanins and tannins

NEGATIVES

  • prolonged or extreme stress can impact yield and quality
  • expensive as need to put in equipment to monitor and respond to levels of moisture in soil
29
Q

What is ‘dry farming’?

A
  • no irrigation
  • refers to not using irrigation in areas with limited rainfall in growing season
  • lower yields but improvement in grape quality
30
Q

Why is drainage important?

A
  • if soils are suitably free draining, can cause problems
  • would need to install artificial drainage systems
  • expensive - but better to be done at outset of vineyard development
  • gives healthier, better balanced vines - better for ripening
  • aids mechanisation (can get machinery on soils)
31
Q

What might areas with higher rainfall do differently?

A
  • leave natural vegetation to encourage competition

- improve soil structure and remove plough plans to regulate water drainage

WSET 4 (17 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions