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Water and Soil Water Availability

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The Power of the Terroir: the Case Study of Prosecco Wine

Abstract

The water nourishment of the grapevine is one of the principle factors that determine crop quality and its consistency at harvest from year to year (Dry and Loveys 1998a; Kramer and Boyer 1995; Medrano et al. 2003; Santos et al. 2005). Because of diverse physiological repercussions (cf. vine growth and development, berry quality, etc.), water plays a unique and irreplaceable role. Attention must be paid above all to excess vigour caused by unlimited availability of water (Fig. 7. 1), which often translates into lessened quality due to an overly extended ripening period, dilution, or inhibition of the synthesis of sugars and aromatic compounds, increase in malic acid, alteration of the mesoclimate and consequent increase in phytopathies (Bravdo et al. 1985; Dry and Loveys 1998a; Esteban et al. 2001; Hepner et al. 1985; Matthews et al. 1990; McCarthy 1997; Smart 1984). On the other hand, it is now widely recognised that severe water stress can alter the vine’s activity, block ripening and lower crop through berry dehydration (Fig. 7. 2). It is a question then of achieving a correct equilibrium between water availability in the soil and consumption of water by the vine. It must be remembered too that the vine can bear a slight water deficiency, particularly during the ripening period, but not excess water, which is always harmful.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Consiglio per la Ricerca e la Sperimentazione in Agricoltura, Centro di Ricerca per la Viticoltura, Viale XXVIII Aprile 26, 31015, Conegliano, Italy

    Diego Tomasi, Federica Gaiotti & Gregory V. Jones

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  1. Diego Tomasi
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  2. Federica Gaiotti
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  3. Gregory V. Jones
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Correspondence to Federica Gaiotti .

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Tomasi, D., Gaiotti, F., Jones, G.V. (2013). Water and Soil Water Availability. In: The Power of the Terroir: the Case Study of Prosecco Wine. Springer, Basel. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-0348-0628-2_7

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