Source: WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY submitted to NRP
WINE AND JUICE GRAPE PHYSIOLOGY AND PRODUCTION SYSTEMS
Sponsoring Institution
National Institute of Food and Agriculture
Project Status
COMPLETE
Funding Source
HATCH
Reporting Frequency
Annual
Accession No.
1000186
Grant No.
(N/A)
Cumulative Award Amt.
(N/A)
Proposal No.
(N/A)
Multistate No.
(N/A)
Project Start Date
Aug 15, 2013
Project End Date
Jun 30, 2018
Grant Year
(N/A)
Program Code
[(N/A)]- (N/A)
Recipient Organization
WASHINGTON STATE UNIVERSITY
240 FRENCH ADMINISTRATION BLDG
PULLMAN,WA 99164-0001
Performing Department
Prosser Irrigated Ag Res & Ext Center
Non Technical Summary
This project will provide a scientific basis of and practical recommendations for modern irrigation management. We will develop optimized management strategies to improve irrigation accuracy with a goal to enhance both yield and quality of white wine grapes and juice grapes. The optimization procedure will involve variation of both extent and timing of controlled water stress. Measurements of plant responses, growth, yield formation, and fruit composition will be supplemented with experimental winemaking to test impacts on the end product. We will use the knowledge gained through this research to develop recommendations for irrigation management and transfer these findingsto the industry in the format of website content, workshops, field days, conference presentations, and appropriate publications. In addition, we will conduct frequent measurements of grape cold hardiness throughout the winter to determine if protective measures are necessary. This information will be published weekly on the internet and used to develop mathematical, web-based models that can be used by growers and other industry members as risk-management and decision-aid tools.
Animal Health Component
80%
Research Effort Categories
Basic
20%
Applied
80%
Developmental
(N/A)
Classification

Knowledge Area (KA)Subject of Investigation (SOI)Field of Science (FOS)Percent
1021139106050%
2031139106050%
Knowledge Area
102 - Soil, Plant, Water, Nutrient Relationships; 203 - Plant Biological Efficiency and Abiotic Stresses Affecting Plants;

Subject Of Investigation
1139 - Grapes, general/other;

Field Of Science
1060 - Biology (whole systems);
Goals / Objectives
1. Determine both genetic (cultivar) and environmental (including manageable) effects on grapevine yield components and fruit composition. 2. Determine optimum irrigation strategies for mechanized juice grape production. 3. Determine cold hardiness of grapevine cultivars throughout the winter.
Project Methods
1. Field trials will be conducted in drip-irrigated Chardonnay and Riesling vineyards in collaboration with an industry cooperator. Both trials are being established in 2013 and will be maintained for at least three but preferably five years. Each trial will comprise three (first year) or six (subsequent years) irrigation treatments replicated in four blocks, with all other management practices applied according to company standard practice. Treatments will include different approaches to determining vineyard water demand and different levels of pre- and post-veraison water deficit using regulated deficit irrigation. Soil and plant water status will be monitored using neutron probes and pressure chambers, respectively. Shoot vigor and total growth will be estimated from measurements of shoot length and number and pruning weight. Canopy density will be assessed by the point quadrat method, and fruit exposure will be estimated from measurements of cluster temperature and light. Yield components and fruit composition will be determined at harvest. We will pay special attention to any carryover effects on the following year's productivity. It is anticipated that small lots of wine will be made from each or selected treatment replicates in the WashingtonState University (WSU) Irrigated Agriculture Research and Extension Center (IAREC) research winery beginning in year two of the trials. 2. Minimally pruned, drip-irrigated Concord grapevines planted at WSU-IAREC in 2003 are being used for this study. In 2011, we established seven irrigation treatments in four replicated blocks, ranging from full irrigation (100% ET) to moderate water deficit (50% ET), either throughout the fruit development period or before or after veraison. We monitor soil moisture in all treatments and measure stem water potential (xylem pressure) to determine irrigation effects on soil and vine water status. This is supplemented by measurements of canopy dimensions, size, surface area, density, and volume. Light penetration into the fruit zone is measured at veraison and before harvest. Yield and its components and fruit composition are determined to assess the influence of irrigation management on vineyard productivity and fruit quality. 3. We will continue to determine bud and cane cold hardiness of a wide range of wine and juice grape cultivars from October through March each year. Cane sampleswill becollected from node positions four through six on mature vines growing in the WSU-IAREC vineyards. Lethal temperatureswill be determined using differential thermal analysis as described by Mills et al. (2006). Information on the temperatures at which 10%, 50%, or 90% of the buds are killed and at which 10% of the cane bark (phloem) or wood (xylem), respectively, is injuredwill beposted regularly on the internet (wine.wsu.edu/research-extension/weather/cold- hardiness). We will also use the data generated through these measurements to improve the accuracy and reliability of our cold hardiness model (Ferguson et al. 2011, Keller et al. 2011), using statistical methods, and the model's implementation on WSU AgWeatherNet (weather.wsu.edu).

Progress 08/15/13 to 06/30/18

Outputs
Target Audience:Grape growers, vineyard owners, vineyard managers, consultants Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Industry meetings, seminars, field visits. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Field trials were conducted with both wine grapes (Cabernet Sauvignon, Riesling, Chardonnay) and juice grapes (Concord) to test deficit irrigation strategies for optimum fruit yield and quality. Different deficit irrigation strategies were tested in Cabernet Sauvignon and Concord, while full irrigation (no water stress) was compared with regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) and partial rootzone drying (PRD) in Riesling and Chardonnay. The Concord trial demonstrated that large, established, heavily-cropped, commercial Concord vineyards can be converted from flood to drip irrigation, and from hand pruning to machine pruning, without loss of productivity, while allowing significant savings in irrigation water and labor. The Cabernet Sauvignon trial demonstrated that supplying only 25% of the evaporative demand (compared with 70% and 100%) of a vineyard during the fruit development and ripening period led to declining vine performance, whereas supplying 25% water before ripening and 100% during ripening optimized plant growth, yield, and fruit and wine quality. The Riesling and Chardonnay trials demonstrated that PRD may be a viable, and possibly better, alternative to RDI in the arid climate of eastern Washington. Canopy growth, berry size, and fruit composition were close to ideal with PRD but were compromised by RDI. The latter led to excessive sunlight exposure of the fruit, which was associated with undesirable bitter and astringent phenolics for white winemaking. Cold hardiness was measured on 25 wine and juice grape cultivars throughout each winter to determine changes in critical temperatures for cold injury and provide decision support to growers for the implemetation of cold mitigation practices in the filed. Data were posted weekly on the internet (http://wine.wsu.edu/extension/weather/cold-hardiness).

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Keller M. and L.J. Mills. 2017: Sunbelt as a possible Concord juice grape partner in a warming world. HortTechnology 27: 557-562.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Romero P., P. Bot�a and M. Keller. 2017: Hydraulics and gas exchange recover more rapidly from severe drought stress in small pot-grown grapevines than in field-grown plants. J. Plant Physiol. 216: 58-73.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Keller M., P. Romero, H. Gohil, R.P. Smithyman, W.R. Riley, L.F. Casassa and J.F. Harbertson. 2016: Deficit irrigation alters grapevine growth, physiology, and fruit microclimate. Am. J. Enol. Vitic. 67: 426-435.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Keller M., P.M. Shrestha, G.E. Hall, B.R. Bondada and J.R. Davenport. 2016: Arrested sugar accumulation and altered organic acid metabolism in grape berries affected by berry shrivel syndrome. Am. J. Enol. Vitic. 67: 398-406.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Casassa L.F., M. Keller and J.F. Harbertson. 2015: Regulated deficit irrigation alters anthocyanins, tannins and sensory properties of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and wines. Molecules 20: 7820-7844.


Progress 10/01/16 to 09/30/17

Outputs
Target Audience:Grape growers, vineyard owners, vineyard managers, consultants Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Industry meetings, seminars, field visits. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Continue the irrigation trials with Riesling and Concord. Also, continue the measurement of cold hardiness in the winter season.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Field trials were conducted with both wine grapes (Riesling) and juice grapes (Concord) to test deficit irrigation strategies for optimum fruit yield and quality. This was the first year for the Riesling trial, in which full irrigation (no water stress) was compared with regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) and partial rootzone drying (PRD). The trial was established successfully, but no conclusions can be drawn from the preliminary data that were collected in 2017. The Concord trial demonstrated that large, established, heavily-cropped, commercial Concord vineyards can be converted from flood to drip irrigation, and from hand pruning to machine pruning, without loss of productivity, while allowing significant savings in irrigation water and labor. Additional experiments with potted wine (Merlot, Syrah) and juice (Concord) grapevines showed that water discharge through berry transpiration and/or xylem backflow is required for normal grape ripening. This research providided an explanation for why grapes ripen more rapidly under warm and relatively dry conditions, and why they can still ripen even under very humid conditions that prevent berry transpiration. Cold hardiness was measured on 25 wine and juice grape cultivars throughout the winter to determine changes in critical temperatures for cold injury and provide decision support to growers for the implemetation of cold mitigation practices in the filed. Data were posted weekly on the internet: http://wine.wsu.edu/extension/weather/cold-hardiness.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Zapata D., M. Salazar-Gutierrez, B. Chaves, M. Keller and G. Hoogenboom. 2017: Predicting key phenological stages for 17 grapevine cultivars (Vitis vinifera L.). Am. J. Enol. Vitic. 68: 60-72.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Zhang Y. and M. Keller. 2017: Discharge of surplus phloem water may be required for normal grape ripening. J. Exp. Bot. 68: 585-595.
  • Type: Conference Papers and Presentations Status: Published Year Published: 2017 Citation: Zhang Y. and M. Keller. 2017: Grape ripening: why berry transpiration and xylem backflow matter. Proc. 20th International GiESCO Symposium, Mendoza, Argentina, pp. 297-300.


Progress 10/01/15 to 09/30/16

Outputs
Target Audience:Grape growers, vineyard owners, vineyard managers, consultants. Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?Industry meetings, field visits. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Start new irrigation projects with Riesling and Concord. The Riesling project will focus on partial rootzone drying. The Concord project will monitor the changes that occur when irrigation is switched from an overhead sprinkler system to drip irrigation. Also, continue the investigation into physiological responses to drought stress of different wine grape cultivars.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Field trials were conducted with both wine grapes (Chardonnay, Riesling) and juice grapes (Concord) to test deficit irrigation strategies for optimum fruit yield and quality. The trials demonstrated that partial rootzone drying may be an interesting strategy for white wine grapes. Moreover, considerable water savings can be achieved in juice grapes if irrigation targets the early fruit development period. A 50% reduction in water supply during fruit ripening compared with current industry practices did not decrease fruit yield and quality. In another field trial, 18 wine grape cultivars were tested during three consecutive drydown and rewatering cycles. Comparing the changes in soil moisture with the changes in midday leaf water potential revealed differences in behavior that mostly confirmed the preliminary grouping established in 2015, even though some cultivars (e.g. Sauvignon blanc, Malbec) were classified differently between the two years. Most of the near-isohydric cultivars did not decrease their leaf water potential until soil moisture declined below certain threshold levels (e.g. 12% in this soil). Such thresholds were not observed for the anisohydric cultivars which decreased their leaf water potential in concert with soil moisture, but had relatively higher stomatal conductance relative to their leaf water potential at high soil moisture. Stomatal closure in these cultivars was insufficient to prevent severe water stress when leaf water potential dropped, which resulted in defoliation in some cases (e.g. Cabernet franc). In other cultivars (e.g. Riesling), leaf water potential seemed far more responsive to vapor pressure deficit (VPD) than to soil moisture. The response of some cultivars (e.g. Merlot, Sauvignon blanc) was highly variable, and it remains unclear whether they were truly isohydric or VPD-responsive.

Publications

  • Type: Books Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Keller M. 2016: The Science of Grapevines: Anatomy and Physiology. Chinese Translation by J. Wang, C.Q. Duan, F. He and B.Q. Zhu. China Science Publishing & Media, Beijing, China, for Elsevier, New York, NY, USA.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Bowen P., K.C. Shellie, L. Mills, J. Willwerth, C. Bogdanoff and M. Keller. 2016: Abscisic acid form, concentration, and application timing influence phenology and bud cold hardiness in Merlot grapevines. Can. J. Plant Sci. 96: 347-359.
  • Type: Theses/Dissertations Status: Published Year Published: 2016 Citation: Perez J.C. 2016: Predicting wine grape weight loss. MS thesis, Washington State University.


Progress 10/01/14 to 09/30/15

Outputs
Target Audience:Scientists, grape growers, winemakers, consultants, other grape and wine industry professionals Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided?Training for 1 postdoc, 2 PhD and 1 MS students, 1 visiting PhD student, 1 visiting scientist, 1 graduate student intern, 1 undergraduate student intern, 1 high school student intern. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest?By publication in peer-reviewed journals, a textbook and a book chapter, and presentations at both scientific conferences and industry meetings. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals?Repeat experiments, train students and postdocs, publish, disseminate information to stakeholders.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Premium-quality wine production requires fruit that has been grown to specifications. This in turn requires that growers tailor vineyard management practices to specific grape cultivars and to the target wine style. Irrigation management is the most powerful tool available in arid eastern Washington to maximize fruit quality, but there is little knowledge regarding optimum irrigation amounts and timing for individual cultivars. This is in part because irrigation trials have been conducted with relatively few (mostly red) cultivars, and in part because cultivars differ in their response to water deficit, which makes generalizations of research results challenging. The present study addresses this deficiency by investigating deficit irrigation strategies for the state's two most widely grown white wine grape cultivars, Chardonnay and Riesling. Additionally, the project studies the variation among cultivars with respect to their response to water deficit at the physiological level and with respect to late-season berry weight loss. This work will provide a basis for tailoring irrigation strategies to individual cultivars in order to optimize yield and fruit quality.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Casassa L.F., M. Keller and J.F. Harbertson. 2015: Regulated deficit irrigation alters anthocyanins, tannins and sensory properties of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and wines. Molecules 20: 7820-7844.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Keller M., L.S. Deyermond and B.R. Bondada. 2015: Plant hydraulic conductance adapts to shoot number but limits shoot vigour in grapevines. Funct. Plant Biol. 42: 366-375.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Keller M., Y. Zhang, P.M. Shrestha, M. Biondi and B.R. Bondada. 2015: Sugar demand of ripening grape berries leads to recycling of surplus phloem water via the xylem. Plant Cell Environ. 38: 1048-1059.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Zhang Y. and M. Keller. 2015: Grape berry transpiration is determined by vapor pressure deficit, cuticular conductance, and berry size. Am. J. Enol. Vitic. 66: 454-462.
  • Type: Books Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Keller M. 2015: The Science of Grapevines  Anatomy and Physiology. 2nd Edition. Elsevier Academic Press, London, UK.
  • Type: Book Chapters Status: Published Year Published: 2015 Citation: Keller M. 2015: Managing grapevines to optimize fruit development in a challenging environment: a climate change primer for viticulturists. In Gerling C. (Ed.): Environmentally Sustainable Viticulture  Practices and Practicality. Apple Academic Press, Waretown, NJ, USA, pp. 259-292.


Progress 10/01/13 to 09/30/14

Outputs
Target Audience: Grape growers, winemakers, consultants Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? Nothing Reported How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Publications, field days, conference and seminar presentations, phone calls, emails, interviews, field visits. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Nothing Reported

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Premium-quality wine production requires fruit that has been grown to specifications. This in turn requires that growers tailor vineyard management practices to specific cultivars and to the target wine style. Irrigation management is the most powerful tool available in arid eastern Washington to maximize fruit quality, but there is little knowledge regarding optimum irrigation amounts and timing for individual cultivars. This is in part because irrigation trials have been conducted with relatively few (mostly red) cultivars, and in part because cultivars differ in their response to water deficit, which makes generalizations of research results challenging. The present study addresses this deficiency by investigating deficit irrigation strategies for the state's two most widely grown white wine grape cultivars, Chardonnay and Riesling. Additionally, the project studies the variation among cultivars with respect to their response to water deficit at the physiological level and with respect to late-season berry weight loss. This work will provide a basis for tailoring irrigation strategies to individual cultivars in order to optimize yield and fruit quality.

Publications

  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Ferguson J.C., M.M. Moyer, L.J. Mills, G. Hoogenboom and M. Keller. 2014: Modeling dormant bud cold hardiness and budbreak in twenty-three Vitis genotypes reveals variation by region of origin. Am. J. Enol. Vitic. 65: 59-71.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Keller M., L.J. Mills and M.A. Olmstead. 2014: Fruit ripening has little influence on grapevine cold acclimation. Am. J. Enol. Vitic. 65: 417-423.
  • Type: Journal Articles Status: Published Year Published: 2014 Citation: Keller M. and P.M. Shrestha. 2014: Solute accumulation differs in the vacuoles and apoplast of ripening grape berries. Planta 239: 633-642.


Progress 08/15/13 to 09/30/13

Outputs
Target Audience: Grape growers, winemakers Changes/Problems: Nothing Reported What opportunities for training and professional development has the project provided? A postdoctoral scientist was hired to lead the irrigation field trial. This person is being trained in project management and outreach programming. Two visiting PhD students were trained in cold hardiness measurements and their interpretation. How have the results been disseminated to communities of interest? Publications, field days, conference and seminar presentations, phone calls, emails, interviews, field visits. What do you plan to do during the next reporting period to accomplish the goals? Using the two field trials established in 2013, we will collect physiological and other measurements to test the performance of grapevines under different deficit irrigation strategies. Cold hardiness measurements will be conducted for the benefit of the grape-related industries during the subsequent winter.

Impacts
What was accomplished under these goals? Two field trials were established in the vineyards of a cooperating grower during the 2013 growing season. Separate irrigation hardware and controls were installed in Chardonnay and Riesling blocks to permit independent control of all irrigation treatments. The irrigation system was tested, and preliminary data were collected. These measurements suggest that a soil water threshold ?v = 20% (v/v) might be adequate to avoid plant water stress in the soil of this study. Similarly, a midday stem water potential threshold ?s = -0.4 MPa might be a reasonable threshold to avoid water stress in both cultivars. Evidently, these values are preliminary and will require more detailed study in 2014. Cold hardiness measurements were conducted biweekly throughout the winter on 24 grape cultivars. The information was continually posted on our website (http://wine.wsu.edu/research-extension/weather/cold-hardiness) as a decision-aid tool for growers and other industry stakeholders.

Publications