Vine Propagation

Question 1

What are the two methods of vine propagation?

Answer 1

1. Cutting
2. Layering

Question 2

What is a cutting?

Answer 2

• A cutting is a section of a vine shoot that is planted and then grows as a new plant.
• It permits the use of rootstocks, which can easily be grafted onto the vine cutting before it is planted.
• Nurseries are able to treat vine cuttings to avoid spread of diseases.

Question 3

What is layering?

Answer 3

• Layering is a method of filling gaps in a vineyard (e.g. due to the death of a vine) by using shoots from an established neighbouring vine to produce a new vine
• A cane is bent down and a section of it is buried in the ground
• The tip of the cane points up out of the ground
• The section that is buried takes root and, once these roots are established, the cane linking the new growth to the original plant is cut
• The new vine grows on its own roots, not those of a rootstock

Question 4

Why is layering not used as widely as cutting?

Answer 4

• No protection against phylloxera
• No ability to have the qualities that a choice of rootstocks offers

Question 5

Why are vines not propagated through seeds?

Answer 5

Vines that grow through seeds are not genetically identical to the parent vines and although they can show similar characteristics to their parents, more often they are notably different.

Question 6

What is clonal selection?

Answer 6

• Vines with particularly favourable characteristics are selected by vine nurseries or grape growers for propagation by cuttings in order to grow new vines with these favourable characteristics.

Question 7

When is a new grape variety formed through cloning?

Answer 7

• On rare occasions, a mutation might be so significant that the new vine is classified as a new grape variety.
• Example: Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Blanc and Pinot Gris are all mutations of the grape variety Pinot

Question 8

Why would a grape grower buy and plant a number of different clones of the same grape variety?

Answer 8

If they bought and planted the same clones, there would be:
- Less diversity in the fruit
- Less complex and balanced final wine
- Vineyard becomes more susceptible to disease (the identical vines are likely to all be equally susceptible to a disease or pest)

Question 9

What is mass selection (aka Selection Massale)?

Answer 9

Selection and monitoring of vines to ensure the propagation of the best vines

• Vineyard owners take cuttings from the vines in their own vineyard and cultivate these cuttings
• Cuttings can be sent to a nursery for grafting onto rootstock where necessary
• Taken from several different vines

Question 10

How are vines for mass selection chosen?

Answer 10

• Best-performing vines are selected (e.g. those that consistently yield fruit with the desired characteristics)
• These vines are selected after several years of monitoring and recording their performance.

Question 11

What are the advantages and disadvantages of Selection Massale?

Answer 11

Advantages:

• Increases diversity of planting material in the vineyard and throughout the region
• Vineyard owner using their own unique planting material (different from that being bought from the local nursery), can enhance fruit quality and/or yield (and can be used as a marketing asset)

Disadvantages:

• Costly (time, labour)
• If parent vine infected by disease (e.g. a virus), likely to be passed onto new vines

Question 12

How are new grape varieties formed?

Answer 12

1. New grape varieties are typically produced from seeds
2. Cross fertilisation
3. Grapes develop; seeds from these plants are planted and grown
4. New vines that grow from the seeds will have different characteristics (in the way that siblings in a family are not identical to each other or their parents) - On rare occasions, a mutation might be so significant that the new vine is classified as a new grape variety.

Question 13

What is cross fertilisation?

Answer 13

The pollen from the stamens of the flowers of one vine is transferred to the stigmas of the flowers of another vine and fertilisation occurs.

Question 14

What is the process for determining if a new variety should become widely planted?

Answer 14

• If a new vines has desirable characteristics, it may be propagated by cuttings to create identical vines
• Potential and long-term value of the new vine will be assessed over a long period of time
• If there is thought to be value in making this new variety available commercially, it will need to be registered on the OIV catalogue as a new grape variety

Question 15

What is a cross?

Answer 15

• When the two parent vines are from the same species, the offspring is called a ‘cross’
• Example: Pinotage is a cross of Pinot Noir and Cinsault

Question 16

What is a hybrid?

Answer 16

• When the two parent vines are from different species, the offspring is called a ‘hybrid’.
• Example: Vidal Blanc, from Ugni Blanc (V. vinifera) and a member of the Seibel family (American parentage)

Question 17

Why are hybrids made?

Answer 17

• Bred in an attempt to combine the resistance of non-vinifera species (to diseases, pests or climatic extremes) and the quality of fruit from V. vinifera
• Unfortunately, many hybrids do not produce fruit that matches the quality of most V. vinifera (although there are notable exceptions), but their other characteristics make them useful as rootstocks