Interactions with the Physical Environment

Question 1

What is the definition of Climate provided from lecture?

Answer 1

Climate is a combination of all meteorological phenomena characterizing the atmosphere of a given point on the Earth’s surface. It is generally determined over a 30 year period.

Question 2

What are the 4 types (think sizes) of climates

Answer 2

1. Macroclimate (NW Italy)
2. Mesoclimate or local climate (Colli Piacentini)
3. Microclimate (small area, single vineyard)
4. Bunch microclimate (Can be scaled down to a single plant)

Question 3

What are the 6 main climactic variables

Answer 3

1. Temperature
2. Sunlight Radiation (intensity and hours of sunshine)
3. Rainfall
4. Wind
5. Hail
6. Relative Humidity

Question 4

What are bioclamactic Indices and what are two examples

Answer 4

Bioclimactic Indices are indicators of the climactic potential in a given area

1. Winkler Index
2. Huglin Index

Question 5

What are two types of Cold Injuries

Answer 5

1. Minimum Winter temperature (grapevine vitality is affected when T is less than -10/-15 C)
2. Spring and late season frost (Generally more dangerous because the grapevine is already or still growing i.e. not dormant)

Question 6

3 Main aspects of the biology of cold injuries

Answer 6

1. Water freezing in the inter-cellular spaces (cell death, mechanical action of ice crystals)
2. Tissue disorganization
3. Precipitation of cytoplasmic proteins

Question 7

What is normally done to suckler shoots? Does it matter the type of climate that the grower is in?

Answer 7

Usually you would want to cut suckler shoots, due to competition but in colder climates growers usually keep one so that in times of severe frost and cold temperatures they can regrow the vine via the suckler. The pruning of the sucklers is called the suckling

Question 8

Two types of heat transfer methods

Answer 8

1. Advection (Wind)
2. Radiation (sun)

Question 9

Discuss Thermal inversion

Answer 9

Thermal inversion is when the temperature increases as elevation decreases, however at a certain point before reaching the ground the temperature decreases again. This is usually in valleys in which cool air pools at the bottom of hill. This is why planting vineyards on a valley floor can be problematic. Planting on a slope within the area of a thermal belt (highest temp) with cold air drainage can be the best!

Question 10

Two types of cold prevention methods

Answer 10

1. Passive
2. Active

Question 11

What are the 3 types of Passive prevention of cold injuries

Answer 11

1. Site Selection
2. Selection of grapevine varieties with a delayed growing cycle allowing to naturally escape frost events
3. Adoption of specific management with canopy growing higher than the frost belt

Question 12

What are 3 active control strategies

Answer 12

1. Mixing air (wind machines, helicopters)
2. Generating heat (Heaters)
3. Overvine sprinklers

Question 13

Why is variation in bunch temperature important and what can be done?

Answer 13

Bunch temperature can be important for the health of the bunch, aspect is incredibly important for this and depending where you plant and the aspect of the slope as well as aspect of the rows, bunches that have east exposures may be cooler than west or visa versa

Question 14

When is hail the worst for grapevines

Answer 14

Closer to harvest

Question 15

What are 2 negatives of using nets

Answer 15

1. They can slightly seduce air circulation
2. They can negatively affect photosynthesis

Question 16

What are 4 important considerations for Rainfall and what is the average of what a vineyard might need in a year?

Answer 16

1. Annual rainfall
2. Intensity
3. Seasonal Variation
4. Interactions with soil

250-300 mm/year

Question 17

Importance of wind: what are three things that decrease with higher winds and what are two important concepts to remember about winds on a grapevine

Answer 17

1. Shoot Length
2. Leaf area
3. Stomata density

Without air circulation we can have too high humidity

and

Conversely Wind can make the area drier and the plants VPD or Vapor Pressure Demand can increase

Question 18

What are the 6 Main climactic factors?

Answer 18

1. Latitude and Longitude
2. Elevation
3. Aspect
4. Slope
5. Distance to bodies of water
6. Distance to forests

Question 19

Elevation can balance and mitigate the effects related to …

Answer 19

Latitude

Question 20

Discuss the three things that vineyard aspect can change and talk about which aspects are best for which climates

Answer 20

1. Radiation
2. Temperature
3. RH (relative Humidity)

South to West aspects could be great for cooler climates, but problematic for warmer climates

Question 21

Describe the role of bodies of water

Answer 21

Bodies of water can mitigate temperature by decreasing annual Max Temp and increasing Min Temp in winter

Question 22

What is the affect of slope and vineyard aspect on radiation

Discuss the North to south scale

as well as what we do for flat vineyards

Answer 22

The higher the slope the higher the interception of radiation

High Slope facing South Lower Flat
for grapes like Cab Sauv, Nebbiolo
N—————————————————————————–S
Higher slope facing North
for grapes like pinot noir, chard Lower Flat

For flat vineyards we change the row orientation