Source: Sink Relationships in the Grapevine S. Kaan Kurtural Department of Viticulture and Enology Source: Sink Relations Leaf = Photosynthesis = Source Berry = Sugar Sink 2 3/4/2018 1
Sink growing apex Source-Sink Source Leaf photosynthesis Sink berry Sink roots, trunk From the Exposed Leaf to Fruit Sink 1 Amount of available light 4 Depends on number of sinks 2 Amount of intercepted light depends on leaf area and canopy structure 3 Fraction of DM exported to clusters 2
Function of the grapevine canopy Carbon fixation Yield Controlling cluster microclimate Berry chemistry Incidence of fungal infection Optimum light environment in the fruit zone during ripening Maximize diffuse or indirect sunlight within the canopy interior Minimize exposure of clusters to direct sunlight particularly in warm climates 3
B F C E D H A G Radiation Effects on Whole Canopy Net Canopy Pn ( mol CO2/vine/s) 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 0 750 1000 1250 1500 1750 2000 2250 2500 PPFD ( mol/m 2 /s) Kurtural et al. 2003; Dami et al. 2005; Kurtural et al. 2005; 2006 6% reflected 100% incident LLN#1 10 % transmitted LLN#2 1% transmitted LLN#3 0.1% transmitted 4
Common canopy types Canopy type Leaf area per vine Exposed leaf area Interior leaf area 22 m 2 8 m 2 (35%) 14 m 2 22 m 2 6 m 2 (25%) 16 m 2 22 m 2 15 m 2 (70%) 7 m 2 Evolution of berry chemistry Cabernet Sauvingon 5
Source:Sink Management Balancing vegetative growth with reproductive growth Not a direct measurement Single most important practice Vine balance thresholds Ravaz index: 5 to 10 kg/kg Pruning weight/ m of row: 0.8 to 1.0 kg/m Unbalanced vines Large canopies High water demand Fruit of inferior quality Source-Sink Yield and berry size, maturity, leaf area and wine sensory 6
Source-Sink 2 Source-Sink Balance Balance between being sink limited or source limited Source-sink balance When fruit number is increased, fruit size does not change, when sink-limited, and decreases under source-limited conditions Yield increases with crop load (bud or cluster numbers) when sink-limited, and does not increase when sourcelimited 7
Yield at Different Crop Loads by Thinning at Veraison (clusters/vine) For dry-farmed vines at Oakville in Napa Valley, sink limited Nuzzo and Matthews 2006 Berry Size at Different Crop Loads on dry farmed Cabernet Sauvignon Nuzzo and Matthews 2006 8
Response of Berry Size to Crop Load in Shiraz Freeman et al. Shiraz - in Coombe and Dry. Source/Sink 1 9
Changes in Brix after Veraison Low crop level accelerates sugar accumulation Reduces amount of harvested wine Dry farmed Cabernet Sauvignon Nuzzo and Matthews AJEV 2006 Sugar Accumulation at Various Crop Loads (0.5 2.0) Cabernet Sauvignon Nuzzo and Matthews AJEV 2006 10
Slope = 1 day / ton Brix Delay with Crop Load Cluster thinning Nuzzo and Matthews AJEV 2006 Anthocyanin Concentration Dependency L.E. Williams 11
Sugar Yield at Various Crop Loads Nuzzo and Matthews AJEV 2006 Crop Level and Leaf Area Sourcelimited Experiments to reduce leaf area per unit of fruit until vines were clearly source limited Responses of size, sugar, and color to increasing source (leaf area) saturated at about 10 12 sq. cm. / gm fruit 10-12 cm 2 leaf area / g fruit should form a cornerstone of our sense of balance 12
Ratio of Leaf Area to Fruit S. Poni - Italy Vine Balance Data does not indicate leaf area or pruning weight to fruit ratios provide an absolute value of source/sink relationships in grapevines What can one measure to estimate whether the crop load can be ripened well? Impact on the cluster microclimate Important determinant of fruit composition Leaf area effects amount of radiation hitting the berry 13
Over cropping? Is this a thing? Sugar delay Sugar maturity not reached Low color And with more severe overcropping: Increasing severity Poor cane ripening Reduced fruitfulness, Slow, inhibited budbreak Crop load management- the new reality Hand pruned vs. Machine pruned Pinot gris What is your ideal crop load if economic threshold is 12 T/A? 14
So crop it as much as you want? Yield vs. Quality Is this a thing on which we can hang out hat? We have been unable to provide evidence that high yield or high vigor would reduce berry anthocyanin content across our trials in CA 15
What factors affect berry chemistry? Cluster microclimate Temperature Irradiation Row orientation Canopy height Amount of exposed leaf area/run of row Row orientation? 16
Row orientation? Temperature of berries 17
2 bud spur-pruned vertical shoot positioned (VSP) VSP vs Sprawl 1 foot canes with sprawling vegetation Fish eye lens pictures from cluster perspective 6 clusters (east, west and interior) from 4 vines and 2 trellis (VSP and Sprawl) VSP versus California Sprawl VSP Sprawl Porosity 48 44 40 36 32 28 Damage TA_SDM 52 48 44 R 2 =0.54 40 36 32 Porosity 24 20 Damage TA_SDM 28 24 16 20 12 16 8 12 4 0 VSP - SW Sprawl - SW VSP - NE Sprawl - NE VSP - int Sprawl - int Training side 0 VSP - SW Sprawl - SW VSP - NE Sprawl - NE VSP - int Sprawl - int Training side SE NW Interior SE NW Interior Canopy porosity Visual assessment of damage 8 4 0 VSP - SW Sprawl - SW VSP - NE Sprawl - NE VSP - int Sprawl - int Training side SE NW Interior Anthocyanins 18
NEGATIVE RELATION BETWEEN CANOPY POROSITY AND ANTHOCYANINS 3 Total Anthocyanins (mg per Berry) 2 1 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 Canopy Porosity (%) OPTIMIZATION OF CANOPIES THROUGH METABOLIC MARKERS R 2 = 0.56 Measure exposure Design trellis and manage exposure to achieve optimal quality Develop a metabolic marker for exposure Relate marker to changes in composition 3 8 3/4/2018 19
METABOLIC DATA LOGGER (BIOMARKER) VS CANOPY POROSITY ASSESSMENT Total Flavonols (mg per Berry) 0.25 0.20 Content per berry (normalized) 2.0 0.15 0.15 1.4 1.2 0.10 0.10 1.0 0.8 0.05 0.05 0.6 Optimal value 0.4 0.00 0.2 0.00 0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 0.0 0 20 40 60 80 100 120 Canopy porosity (%) Biomarker Exp - Deg - Exp + Deg - Exp + Deg + Exp + Deg ++ Total Flavonols (mg per Berry) 0.25 R 2 1.8 Proanthocyanidins = 0.23 Anthocyanins Flavonols Degradation 0.20 R 2 = 0.55 1.6 Inductio n 3 9 3/4/2018 New Source:Sink trial at Oakville Station 20
How does it look in the field? 33%: 10 clusters 33%: 2/3 of leaf area removed 100%: 30 clusters 100% All leaves retained Yawn. Nothing new here? Or is there? 21
Shifts in ripening Shift in phenology 22
Summary Vine balance can be evaluated on basis of adequate sugar and color accumulation Exposed leaf area per foot of row may be a better indicator Not grower friendly Berry flavors are derived from berry metabolism Berry flavors are not translocated more on this throughout the day THANK YOU FOR LISTENING! 4 6 3/4/2018 23