General concepts of viticultural. Genetics. Biological and climatic factors. Soil and grapevine, effect of soil on quality. Cultivar-environment interactions. Activity of the main grapevine organs, life and annual cycle, shoot growth and development. Gas exchange, light interception, exposed and shaded leaves activity. Canopy efficiency evaluation. Flower induction, fruit formation. Berries metabolism ripening and accumulation.
Fregoni M. Viticoltura di qualità. Ed. Informatore Agrario, Verona 1998 (Biblioteca Dipartimento di Ortoflorofrutticoltura).
Champagnol F. Elements de physiologie de la vigne et de viticulture générale. Emp. Dehan, Montpellier 1984 (Dipartimento di Ortoflorofrutticoltura, stanza 67).
Taiz L., Zeiger E., Fisiologia vegetale (seconda edizione). PICCIN, 2002 (Dipartimento di Ortoflorofrutticoltura, stanza 67)
Learning Objectives
Knolewdge acquired: concepts that form the basis for understanding the viticulture from botanic to ecology and physiology.
Competence acquired (at the end of the course): understand origin of viticulture vine ecology and application of cultural management for the correct vineyard management
Skills acquired (at the end of the course): “terroir” suitability to vine growing evaluation, as well as vineyard efficiency evaluation, corrective treatments to improve efficiency.
Prerequisites
Courses to be used as requirements (required and/or recommended)
Courses required: Botany, Agronomy
Courses recommmended: General Chemistry, Organic Chemistry
Frequency of lectures, practice and lab, although non compulsory, is strongly recommended
Teaching tools
Video projector, PC, overhead projector, experimental fields, labs
Teaching Methods
Total hours of the course (including the time spent in attending lectures, seminars, private study, examinations, etc...): 300
Hours reserved to private study and other indivual formative activities: 188
Contact hours for: Lectures (hours): 70
Contact hours for: Laboratory (hours): 5
Contact hours for: Laboratory-field/practice (hours): 30
Seminars (hours): 3
Stages: 0
Intermediate examinations: 4
Further information
More information can be directly achived from the teacher
Type of Assessment
Exam modality: oral examination on the subjects of lectures and laboratory; clarity of base concepts, real problems solving capacity, language skills.
Course program
Sistematic of grapevine, history, genetics and genetic improvement. ): General information about viticultural ecology. Biological factors: variety and rootstock. Climate effect: light, temperature, rain, bioclimatic indices. Climate factors: latitude, altitude, exposure, sea, lakes and rivers, problems by frost and hail. Soil: soil composition and grape quality. Effect of physical soil characteristics on grape quality. Effect of chemical composition. Environment choice: zoning and terroir. Modern zoning systems: macro- meso- and micro-zoning. Cultivar-environment interactions. Pedological studies, links between soil and biological features. Study of biological system.
Physiology: description and behaviour of grapevine organs; roots, shoots, buds. Annual and vital cycle. Vegetative and reproductive cycle.
Root growth and development: external and internal factors. Water and nutrient uptake, effect of water status on vine physiology, nutrient availability and uptake. Nutrients and water deficiency: symptoms and diagnostic.
Shoot growth and development: effect of temperature, water and nutrients, light and photoperiod. Water relations, hormonal balance, transport system. Intrinsic characteristics: acrotony, lateral development, dynamic of growth.
Photosynthesis: effect of physical factors. Light, CO2, temperature, water, air humidity. Biological factors: stomata, sugar accumulation, leaf age, genetic aspects. From single leaf to whole canopy: light interception, shaded leaves activity. Measure of leaf surface, effect of several techniques on exposed leaf surface; canopy efficiency and evaluation.
Photosynthesis products translocation: general characteristics, sap composition, mechanism and transport velocity. Transport along the shoot, role of growth regulators, other variability factors. Effect of graft and shoot position.
Net photosynthesis and carbohydrate partitioning, storage and soluble sugars, starch synthesis.
Berries formation and development: flower induction, flowering, hormonal balance, growth factors. Metabolism and biochemical factors: respiration, organic acids formation and degradation, nitrogen compounds, pectins, phenolic compounds. Biosynthesis, evolution during ripening, accumulation. Aromatic substances synthesis.