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Grapevine downy mildew (Plasmopara viticola) is a serious economic disease for Australian viticulture. Using different detection techniques 51 new and revised microsatellite primers have been developed for P. viticola based on American and European isolates. Thus far, only a subset of the developed microsatellites have been tested for polymorphisms among Australian P. viticola populations. This study tests all 51 microsatellites, under the same PCR conditions, for polymorphism on Australian isolates from geographically distinct regions. Of the 51 microsatellites, 18 showed polymorphism between the isolates tested and or P. viticola GenBank sequences. A selection of these microsatellites will be used for a larger population analysis study on Australian isolates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This investigation was carried outduring both 2016& 2017 seasons in a private vineyard at El-Khatatba region, Minufyia Governorate to studytheEffect of different levels of buds load on bud behavior and the quality of Early Sweet grapes. The chosen vines were 7-yearold, grown in a sandy soil, spaced at 2 X 3 meters, irrigated by the drip irrigation system, trellised by the Spanish Parron shape system. Vines were trained to quadrilateral cordon and spur-pruned. Vines pruned to three different levels of bud load (48,72 and 96 buds/vine) and number of buds per fruiting spurs adopted to 2,4 and 6 buds/spur. The results showed that (48bud/vine)24spurs ×2 budsincreased bud behavior, physical characteristics, vegetative growth, wood ripening and weight of pruning. In addition, total carbohydrates in canes, however, the levelload of (96 bud/vine) 24spurs ×4 budsgave the highest yield per vinein both seasons. Finlay, the best results was (48 bud/vine) namely 24,12 and 8 fruiting spurs adopted to 2,4and 6 buds/spur, respectively. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In South Africa, grapes are an important crop in the Western and Northern Cape provinces. The wine industry makes a significant contribution to the economy in these regions. Wineries generate large volumes of poor quality wastewater, particularly during harvest. Information on actual amounts of water used by wineries is limited and appears to be inconsistent. Usually, most of the raw water entering wineries ends up as wastewater. Winery wastewater has high levels of chemical oxygen demand (COD) and contains high levels of K+ and Na+. There is considerable variation in wastewater quality parameters between wineries, as well as a strong seasonal variation. In most cases, the wastewater is used for the irrigation of small, permanent-pasture grazing paddocks. The use of winery wastewater for vineyard irrigation could have many potential benefits for the wine industry. Irrigation with wastewater containing high levels of K+ could be beneficial to soil fertility, although long-term application could have negative effects on soil chemical properties. In terms of South African guidelines, wineries must register their intended wastewater use with the Department of Water and Sanitation. The quantity of wastewater irrigated on a weekly basis has to be monitored and the wastewater quality has to be measured monthly. Weekly water balances should be drawn up with the assistance of a soil scientist. When selecting crops for irrigation with winery wastewater, soil characteristics and climatic conditions, as well as wastewater quality and quantity, should be considered. It is important to quantify soil chemical responses to the application of winery wastewater every three months. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper describes a provisional technology of capitalization of liquid wine yeasts as fertilizers for grapevines. Every year in the country from 100 wine enterprises are accumulated about 16,000 tons of liquid wine yeasts. They are discharged into the environment (what is prohibited), causing damage to aquatic basins and soil. As a result of the scientific investigations, has been found that liquid wine yeasts must be included in the agricultural circuit by using them as a fertilizers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Deviation from optimum percentage (DOP) is a diagnosis methodology for leaf analyses which expresses the deviation for each element with respect to its optimal concentration. This deviation is an individual index for each nutrient and allows the sorting of all the analyzed nutrients according to their limitations. A nutritional survey was undertaken over eleven years in La Rioja (Spain), to establish reference concentrations for the nutritional diagnosis of Vitis vinifera L., cv. ‘Tempranillo’ grafted on Richter-110. Reference concentrations for DOP methodology are proposed, and sensibility for the nutritional diagnosis was evaluated for blade and petiole analysis of N, P, K, Ca, Mg, Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, and B at flowering and veraison phenological stages by comparison between DOP and sufficiency ranges (SR) methods. Results suggest that petiole has lower sensibility than blade to detect deficiencies or excesses of N, P, K, Ca, Mg, Zn, and Mn at veraison. In addition, petiole is a better tissue than blade to detect Fe and B deficiencies or excesses. Therefore, our results make possible the right choice between tissues, leaf blade or petiole, for a general nutritional diagnosis of ‘Tempranillo’ grapevines. On the other hand, it is possible to evaluate the status of each nutrient in each phonological stage analyzing both tissues and comparing the nutrient status to its references, DOP or SR, in the most adequate tissue.

Background: Stomatal behavior in grapevines has been identified as a good indicator of the water stress level and overall health of the plant. Microscope images are often used to analyze stomatal behavior in plants. However, most of the current approaches involve manual measurement of stomatal features. The main aim of this research is to develop a fully automated stomata detection and pore measurement method for grapevines, taking microscope images as the input. The proposed approach, which employs machine learning and image processing techniques, can outperform available manual and semi-automatic methods used to identify and estimate stomatal morphological features. Results: First, a cascade object detection learning algorithm is developed to correctly identify multiple stomata in a large microscopic image. Once the regions of interest which contain stomata are identified and extracted, a combination of image processing techniques are applied to estimate the pore dimensions of the stomata. The stomata detection approach was compared with an existing fully automated template matching technique and a semi-automatic maximum stable extremal regions approach, with the proposed method clearly surpassing the performance of the existing techniques with a precision of 91.68% and an F1-score of 0.85. Next, the morphological features of the detected stomata were measured. Contrary to existing approaches, the proposed image segmentation and skeletonization method allows us to estimate the pore dimensions even in cases where the stomatal pore boundary is only partially visible in the microscope image. A test conducted using 1267 images of stomata showed that the segmentation and skeletonization approach was able to correctly identify the stoma opening 86.27% of the time. Further comparisons made with manually traced stoma openings indicated that the proposed method is able to estimate stomata morphological features with accuracies of 89.03% for area, 94.06% for major axis length, 93.31% for minor axis length and 99.43% for eccentricity. Conclusions: The proposed fully automated solution for stomata detection and measurement is able to produce results far superior to existing automatic and semi-automatic methods. This method not only produces a low number of false positives in the stomata detection stage, it can also accurately estimate the pore dimensions of partially incomplete stomata images. In addition, it can process thousands of stomata in minutes, eliminating the need for researchers to manually measure stomata, thereby accelerating the process of analysing plant health. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study was conducted during 2015 & 2016 seasons, on 16 years old Thompson Seedless grapevines, grown on the experimental orchard of the Faculty of Agriculture, Assiut University to study the effect of bio-fertilization (nitrobine or EM) on vegetative growth, nutrient status, and fruiting of Thompson Seedless grapevines. The experiment was arranged in a complete randomized block design with five treatments and three replications one vine per each. The obtained results could be summarized as follow: Using the recommended dose of nitrogen (RDN) via 75 or 50% mineral plus 25 or 50% bio-form significantly increased, pruning wood weight, number of leaves/shoot and leaf area as well as leaf total chlorophyll and leaf nutrient composition compared to use RDN via mineral N fertilizer alone. No significant differences on these traits due to use RDN via 50% mineral plus either 12.5 or 37.5% of nitrobine or 37.5 or 12.5% effective microorganisms (EM) were noticed. All combined fertilization treatments significantly increased the yield and improved the cluster and berry traits compared to use RDN via mineral source only. It is evident from the forogoing results that double form 50% mineral plus either (37.5 and 12.5% nitrobine) or (12.5 or 37.5% EM) improved the vegetative growth, yield and berry quality. In addition, it minimized the production costs and reduced environmental pollution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Throughout the southern Mediterranean regions of Europe, projected climate warming combined with severe droughts during the growing season may alter grape metabolism, thus modifying the nutritional value of berries and the quality of wines. This study investigated the effects of pre- and post-veraison drought under elevated temperatures on berry skin metabolism of two Tempranillo clones (CL). Experimental assays were performed on fruit-bearing cuttings from CL-1089 and CL-843 of Vitis vinifera (L.) cv. Tempranillo subjected to two temperature regimes (24/14 °C or 28/18 °C (day/night)) combined with three irrigation regimes during berry ripening: (i) water deficit from fruit set to veraison (early deficit, ED); (ii) water deficit from veraison to maturity (late deficit, LD); and (iii) full irrigation (FI). At 24/14 °C, the LD treatment performed better than the ED treatment. Differences were attenuated at 28/18 °C and responses were modulated by type of clone. Elevated temperatures induced the accumulation of hexoses and amino acids in berries. ED at 24/14 °C reduced anthocyanins and flavonols, which may decrease the antioxidant properties of fruits. In contrast, the levels of these secondary metabolites did not decrease when LD was applied. Our results suggest that the adaptation of grapevines for climate change might be plausible with the optimization of timing of water deficit and the appropriate selection of clones. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Elicitors play an important role in the defense against pathogens as an alternative to chemical pesticides by increasing secondary metabolites. Their effect on grape amino acid has been little investigated. Thus, the aim of this research was to study the influence of methyl jasmonate (MeJ), chitosan (CHT), and a yeast extract (YE) on grape amino acid composition, through foliar applications to grapevines. The must amino acid concentration was analyzed by HPLC. The results showed that CHT and YE treatments decreased the must concentration of several amino acids, affecting total amino acid content (from 2364 to 1961, and 1818 mg/L, respectively). However, MeJ treatment had a slight effect on grape amino acid content, increasing the concentration of Met (from 8.95 to 12.13 mg/L) and Phe (from 7.96 to 9.29 mg/L). It seems to be that, the resistance induction through CHT and YE treatments results in physiological costs to grapevines associated with a decrease on grape amino acid concentration. Consequently, MeJ applications, as a viticultural practice, could be a better tool than CHT and YE treatments, because did not affect grape amino acid concentration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examined the effects of organically-derived plant growth promoters (PGPs) on vegetative growth of Pinot noir cuttings under glasshouse conditions for 8 weeks. Solutions of 10 products were applied four times, 2 weeks apart, as a soil drench. In standard potting mix, none of the products caused significant increases in vegetative growth. In low-nutrient potting mix, three products (Synerlogic, Actavize, Just Fish) increased aspects of growth, such as leaf number, shoot length and shoot and root dry weight. These products were relatively high in NPK, and therefore cutting growth was positively correlated to concentrations of NPK in the added solutions. The results imply that addition of PGPs does not by default enhance growth of grape cuttings, and that the mechanism of growth enhancement appears to be simple nutrient provision, rather than by a more complex physiological route involving plant hormones or hormone mimics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A five-year trial (2009 to 2013) was executed in a drip-irrigated full-bearing seven-year-old Shiraz/101-14 Mgt vineyard established on a sandy to sandy clay loam soil at Blaauwklippen Farm (33°58'S, 18°50'E) near Stellenbosch, South Africa. Fourteen treatments, consisting of two management practices applied to five cover crop species, as well as winter-growing weeds (no cover crop) and winter-growing weeds (no cover crop) with nematicide applied in the vine row, were applied. The effect of the five cover crop species, either controlled chemically (CC) or mechanically (MC) during grapevine bud break, on the weed spectrum was determined at the end of winter and during grapevine berry set. Total suppression of Lolium species (ryegrass) was achieved with Avena sativa cv. Pallinup (oats) (CC) and Eruca sativa cv. Nemat (Nemat) (CC) after three years. A grass-specific herbicide applied at the end of May 2012 terminated the dominance of ryegrass and facilitated the dominance of Erodium moschatum (musk heron's bill). Sowing the cover crops as late as 2013-05-23 prevented ryegrass from regaining its dominance. After five winters, ryegrass was totally eradicated from oats (CC), oats (MC), Sinapus alba cv. Braco (white mustard) (CC) and Nemat (CC). Musk heron's bill was totally suppressed in all treatments during berry set within two seasons and ryegrass in all the CC treatments by 2011. This probably facilitated the dominance of Digitaria sanguinalis (crab fingergrass). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present investigation was carried out during 2013, 2014 and 2015 seasons to study the effect of plant extracts on growth and fruiting of Flame Seedless grapevines. The experiment was arranged in a randomized complete block design in which the study involved seven treatments with three replications, two vines each. Pruning wood weight, leaf area and leaf chlorophyll were significantly increased by spraying either garlic, turmeric or roselle extracts compared to unsprayed ones. Spraying garlic, turmeric or roselle extracts were very effective in improvement the yield/vine and cluster traits. Moreover, these treatments significantly improved the berry quality in terms of increasing the berry weight, total soluble solids and anthocyanin in skin of berries compared to unsprayed ones. The best results were obtained on the vines that sprayed with 0.2% turmeric extract. No significant differences were obtained among the tested extract. It could be concluded that spraying turmeric, roselle or garlic extract at 0.1% three times annually was necessary to get high yield with good cluster and berry quality of Flame Seedless grapevines. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Arabis mosaic virus (ArMV) is one of several nepoviruses responsible for infectious degeneration disease of grapevines worldwide. To characterize ArMV isolates from grapevines in Iran, total RNA was extracted and the coat protein (CP) gene was amplified by RT-PCR using specific primers and sequenced. The completed CP gene nucleotide sequence of two Iranian isolates was 1518 nt long with 505 amino acids. A phylogenetic tree using CP gene sequences showed three groups, which were strongly supported by bootstrap analyses. Most of the isolates from Europe clustered in two main groups I and II and the two Iranian isolates clustered with a German isolate in group III. The pairwise nucleotide distances within ArMV isolates were 0.0–20.4% with the lowest diversity among isolates of group I followed by isolates of groups II and III. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This experiment aimed at studying the effect of Sida Compound fertilizer containing seaweed extract, natural fertilizers, growth promoters and micronutrients in chelated form on growth, yield and berry quality of table grape ‘Early Superior’. Foliar application of Sida Compound at concentration 0.05 to 0.20%, three times in a season increased shoot length, leaf area and content of N, P and K in the leaves as well as total soluble solids and total sugar contents in fruits. Yield of fruits increased by 29 and 14%, depending on the season.

A trial was carried out aiming to evaluate the development and yield of red wine grapevines under plastic cover in an organic production system in Guarapuava, the Central-Southern region of Paraná State, Brazil. The experimental design was in a randomized blocks, in a 5x2 factorial arrangement (cultivars x rootstocks), with five red wine vine cultivars (Merlot, Malbec, Carbenet Sauvignon, Ives and Early Isabella) and two rootstocks (Paulsen 1103 e VR 043-43). The grafted grapevines were planted in September of 2005 and the evaluations carried out for the three first productive cycles (2006/2007, 2007/2008, 2008/2009). The following variables were evaluated: phenological growth stages, number of clusters, average cluster weight, total yield, total soluble solids content and fresh weight of pruning material. The cultivation of wine grapevines in an organic system under plastic cover demonstrated viability, inhibiting the incidence of diseases and reducing the needs of control. The most limiting factor was the damage caused by wasps and bees that decreased cluster harvest. Despite this problem, between tested grapevine cultivars, the Early Isabella was the most productive in all years, while Malbec was also outstanding in the first cycle. VR 043-43 hybrid could be a suitable rootstock for red wine production in areas infested by 'Perola da Terra' scale insects (Eurhizococcus brasiliensis).Um experimento foi conduzido com o objetivo de avaliar o desenvolvimento e produtividade de uvas para vinho tinto sob cobertura plástica, em sistema orgânico, em Guarapuava, região centro-sul do estado do Paraná, Brasil. O delineamento experimental foi em blocos casualizados, em esquema fatorial 5x2 (cultivares x porta-enxertos), com cinco cultivares de vinho tinto (Merlot, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon, Bordô e Isabel Precoce) e dois porta-enxertos (Paulsen 1103e VR 043-43). As videiras enxertadas foram plantadas em setembro de 2005 e as avaliações foram conduzidas nos três primeiros ciclos produtivos (2006/2007, 2007/2008, 2009/2009). Foram avaliadas as seguintes variáveis: estádios fenológicos, número de cachos, massa média dos cachos, produtividade, teor de sólidos solúveis totais e massa fresca do material de poda. O cultivo de videiras para vinificação em sistema orgânico sob cobertura plástica demonstrou ser viável, inibindo a incidência de doenças e reduzindo a necessidade de controle. O fator mais limitante foi o ataque de vespas e abelhas que severamente reduziram a colheita de cachos. Apesar desse problema, entre as cultivares de videira testadas, a Isabel Precoce foi a mais produtiva em todos os anos, enquanto a 'Malbec' foi também superior no primeiro ciclo. O híbrido 'VR 043-43' poderia ser um porta-enxerto adequado para a produção de uvas para vinho tinto em áreas infestadas com pérola-da-terra (Eurhizococcus brasiliensis).

En este trabajo se pone de relieve el interés que los judíos de La Rioja demostraron durante la Edad Media por el cultivo de la vid y la comercialización del vino, de forma muy especial en los siglos XIV y XV. A lo largo de las páginas que forman este estudio se documenta la intervención de judíos riojanos en las distintas fases de la elaboración y la distribución del vino, y se hace patente la decidida voluntad de las aljamas judías por garantizar el abastecimiento de este producto a las comunidades hebreas.We point out the interest that the Jews of La Rioja put in grapevine farming and in the distribution of wine, along the Middle Ages, especially in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries. Along this work's pages we document the participation of the Jews of La Rioja in wine's different manufacturing and distribution steps. The determined will of the Jewish communities to guarantee the supply of this product for the Hebrew communities becomes evident.

Aims: The aim of this paper is to review examples, taken from New World and Old World vineyards, for which soil physical, chemical or biological properties have influenced a site's terroir, expressed through the personality of the wines. Methods and results: Literature results are presented, together with the results of new research on the control of N uptake and soil N mineralization by Sauvignon Blanc vines at a high fertility site, by withholding irrigation and using different inter-row cover crops. Conclusion: Withholding irrigation from pre-fruit set to veraison restricted N uptake by the vines, leading to better berry quality parameters without significantly affecting Baumé oryield. Significance and impact of study: The results confirm the importance of a regulated supply of water and N at critical stages of vine phenology for achieving optimum fruit quality.

Jellies of seven grapevine varieties were physico-chemical and sensorial characterized for the first time. Jellies differed significantly in moisture and ash contents, colour, pH, acidity and antioxidant activities. ‘Tinta Carvalha’ was the darkest and redness jelly, showing the highest antioxidant activity. Regarding sensory characteristics, no significant differences in the appearance, taste, sweetness, acidity and global assessment were observed among jellies. Nevertheless, these attributes were positively evaluated. In conclusion, the production of different jellies will allow the valorisation of grapevine varieties with less potential for wine production, helping to preserve biodiversity, and be an economic alternative to grape producers who may elaborate an enjoyable product with interesting bioactivity.

Agrobacterium vitis causes common grape vine (Vitis vinifera L.) crown gall disease that destroyed a lot of Slovenian vineyards more than a decade ago. Eighty isolates of Agrobacterium spp. collected during monitoring in 2006 were identified as A. vitis and A. tumefacies by pehA and multiplex PCR method. Tumor-inducing capacity of these strains was assessed on test plants and with PCR methods for detection of the Ti plasmid responsible for tumor induction. With VCF3/VCR3 primer pair six false negatives and no false positives were detected. The high genetic diversity of pathogenic Agrobacterium spp. strains affects the performance of molecular methods, thus biological test should be performed where results from molecular methods are doubtful.

The genetic diversity and ampelographic variability of autochthonous red wine cultivar ‘Refošk’ (Vitis vinifera L.) grown in Slovenia were evaluated with AFLP molecular markers and OIV descriptors, respectively. SSR molecular markers were employed to confirm cultivar identity of analysed samples. Eight AFLP primer combinations, one was monomorphic, produced 16 polymorphic markers in 41 out of 113 samples, what classified samples into monomorphic and polymorphic group. Dendrogram constructed with simple matching coefficient and unweighted pair-group method analysis presented genetic diversity within polymorphic group. Refošk biotypes from monomorphic and polymorphic groups were evaluated with 22 OIV descriptors related to bunch, berry and must, but on the basis of ampelographic characterization samples were not differentiated among two major groups obtained with AFLP analysis. Results of genetic analysis indicated that ‘Refošk’ originated from closely related plants that are phenotypically very similar. With regard to low observed genetic diversity more attention should be dedicated to the selection in order to conserve remaining genetic diversity.

Rugose wood disease complex is one of the most important graft-transmissible grapevine diseases and it is considered to be a viral disease. With the aim to obtain more information about appearance of rugose wood disease observed on cultivar ‘Refošk’, ‘Refošk’ vines from collection vineyard in Komen were used for green grafting on SO4 rootstock and autografts for control were made as well. Rugose wood symptoms were observed on grafts of two ‘Refošk’ biotypes, which confirmed graft transmissibility. Appearance of rugose wood symptoms on autografts excluded the impact of incompatibility in rugose wood disease, but at the same time it could be proposed that stress caused by grafting has an important role.

This study was carried out during the two successive seasons 2015 and 2016 on 13 years old "Superior" grapevines to study the effect of spraying fructose (3, 5%), methionine (3, 5%) and hydrogen cyanamide 5% (Dormex) on bud dormancy release of "Superior" grapevines. Cyanamide is frequently used for grape bud dormancy release. However, those chemicals are potentially harmful to humans. In this study, we used substances that are less toxic to the environment and grape growers, such as fructose and methionine to determine their effects on "Superior" grape bud break. All treatments significantly improved the percentage of bud break, fruiting buds and yield, as well as the advancement of the harvest date and improving the berry quality compared to untreat ones (control). Also, all treatments induce gradually increased bud contents of IAA and GA3 and a gradual decrease of ABA from treated date towards buds burst compared to untreated ones. Dormex spraying gave the highest values of studied traits compared to other treatments. No significant differences were found among 5% dormex and 3% fructose spraying. Hence, 3% fructose shows potential for use as a commercial bud break and improves superior grapes fruiting. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Harmonia axyridis (Pallas) (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae) is an exotic ladybird, first recorded in South Africa in 2004, where it was introduced factitiously. In this study the seasonal occurrence of H. axiridis and other coccinellids were monitored in four vineyards and the adjacent windbreaks over three growing seasons in the Western Cape Province, South Africa. Harmonia axyridis made up the highest mean number of coccinellids collected per site over the collecting period, followed by Hippodamia variegata, Cheilomenes lunata, Exochomus flavipes and Micraspis sp. No indigenous parasitoids were observed attacking H. axyridis. The numbers of H. axyridis on the vines were negatively correlated with temperature but positively with rainfall. In view of the migration of H. axyridis from the vines in December, they appear not to pose any risk of contaminating grapes during harvest and tainting wine as most wine grapes are harvested from January onwards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Previous studies have shown that volatile compounds present within a vineyard during the growing season can be absorbed by grapevines, assimilated within grapes, and then released during fermentation to influence the final aroma of wine. For example, the accumulation of volatile phenols in glycoconjugate forms following grapevine exposure to bushfire smoke, and their subsequent release during winemaking. This study investigated the accumulation of guaiacol glycoconjugates in the fruit, shoots and leaves of Monastrell grapevines following foliar applications (at veraison) of either an aqueous solution of guaiacol or an aqueous oak extract. Fruit, shoot and leaf samples were then collected at 3 time points between veraison and maturity, and analysed by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry and liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry, to quantify guaiacol and its glycoconjugates, respectively. Guaiacol glycoconjugates were observed in fruit and leaves in particular, demonstrating glycosylation occurred after grapevine treatment; however, different glycoconjugate profiles were apparent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This case study examines seed colour during ripening using an exhaustive colorimetric analysis. The aim was to associate the chemical ripening with the seed colour in order to estimate the ripening stages of Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. Cluster samples, obtained from a vertical shoot-positioned vineyard in central Chile, were monitored for their technological and phenolic maturity, as well as for the colorimetric and chemical characteristics of the seeds. The colours of the scanned seed images were determined by human as well as by computer vision. In the first case, an expert assigned a colour to each seed part. In the second case, a computer program estimated the colours of the scanned seed images. An exhaustive analysis of seed colour was proposed, instead of a general observation of seed browning. The seed colour presented a wide range of colours, from moss green to dark brown, depending on the maturity and the face observed. The ripening stages identified, along with the chemical and colorimetric information gathered, were under ripe seed (brown with green traces), ripe seed (dark brown with green traces) and overripe seed (dark brown without any green traces). A new way to quantify seed colour is shown in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A diet rich in plant foods is strongly recommended for its beneficial effect on human health. In fact, plant secondary metabolites may exert various biological activities on mammalian cells. Among them, phenolics are excellent natural antioxidants able to rescue cell redox unbalance responsible for the onset of different pathologies. For these reasons, the present work was focused on the study of grape extracts obtained from eight different Italian Vitis vinifera cultivars, quite rare in Italian viticulture and not yet completely chemically characterized. For each preparation, total simple phenolic, flavonoidic and anthocyaninic content was measured through spectrophotometrical assays, while detailed biochemical profile was revealed by LC-MS analyses. In order to valorize the products of these varieties and increase our knowledge about their potential healthy role, the antioxidant power of the samples was evaluated by two different in vitro antiradical tests: DPPH and FRAP. Moreover, free radical scavenging properties of eleven grape pure compounds were investigated, with the aim to: a) compare their real antiradical property with the theoretical one; b) identify which one of them possessed the best bioactivity; c) understand how they might singularly contribute to the nutraceutical effect of the whole grapevine phytocomplex. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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A estaquia é o método de propagação vegetativa mais utilizado e apresenta como ponto crítico o início do desenvolvimento de um sistema radicular funcional. A estrutura anatômica da estaca pode interferir no processo de enraizamento de algumas espécies, todavia em videira não há informações a respeito. O objetivo deste trabalho foi avaliar a capacidade de enraizamento de estacas de cultivares de Vitis, com ênfase aos aspectos anatômicos. Os quatro cultivares estudados foram: Vitis labrusca L. cv. Bordô, V. rotundifolia Michx. cv. Topsail e os porta-enxertos híbridos entre V. berlandieri Planch. × V. riparia Michx., 'Kobber 5BB' e 'SO4'. Destes cultivares apenas 'Topsail' apresentou dificuldade de enraizamento. Após 77 dias do plantio das estacas, foi observada uma baixa capacidade de enraizamento do cv. Topsail em relação aos outros três cultivares analisados. Também observou-se uma alta porcentagem de estacas vivas, porém não enraizadas, e a ausência de calos neste cultivar. Esses dados podem indicar a existência de fatores endógenos do cv. Topsail que dificultam o enraizamento das estacas. As características anatômicas da base das estacas do cv. Topsail diferiram das demais por manter as calotas de fibras no floema primário, pela presença de floema secundário reduzido com faixas radiais de fibras. Desse modo, a dificuldade de enraizamento desse cultivar pode estar relacionada a barreiras anatômicas.Cutting is the most common method of vegetative propagation. A critical step in this process is the initial development of a functional root system. The anatomical structure of the cutting has been shown to affect the rooting ability of some species, but for grapevines this has not yet been investigated. The aim of this work was to evaluate the rooting ability of Vitis cuttings, with emphasis on the anatomical aspects. The four cultivars studied were: Vitis labrusca L. cv. Bordô, V. rotundifolia Michx. cv. Topsail and hybrid rootstocks of V. berlandieri Planch. × V. riparia Michx., 'Kobber 5BB' and 'SO4'. Of these cultivars, only 'Topsail' showed poor rooting ability; 77 days after planting the cuttings, poor rooting ability of cv. Topsail was observed in relation to the other three cultivars. A high percentage of live cuttings was observed, but they did not take root. There were no calluses on this cultivar. These data may indicate the presence of endogenous factors in cv. Topsail that make it difficult for cuttings to take root. The anatomical features of the base of the cv. Topsail cutting were different from those of the other cultivars in that they retained the fiber bundles of the primary phloem, and they also had reduced secondary phloem with radial fiber bands. Therefore, rooting difficulty in this cultivar may be related to anatomical barriers.

Hilly slopes cultivated with vineyards are often affected by rainfall-induced shallow landslides that cause destruction and loss of the cultivations. For this reason, the assessment of mechanical contribution from grapevine roots is fundamental for slope stability analyses and consequently for the slope preservation. In this context, our work aims to quantitatively evaluate the soil reinforcement given by grapevine roots. The selected study area (13.4 km 2 ), located in the region of Oltrepò Pavese in Northern Italy, is characterized by a high shallow landslides density and is constituted by vineyards in steep slopes. The tested soils are Haplic Calcisols, Petric Calcisols and Calcic Gleysols, with silt loamy or silty clay loamy textures, from high to very high carbonate content and low organic carbon and nitrogen contents. The rootstock of the grapevine is a combination of Vitis berlandieri and Vitis riparia with root systems, which reach average depths of up to 1.5 m. The grapevine root density (number of roots and Root Area Ratio) is rather variable and is strongly correlated to soil permeability. In fact, the results show that low permeable soils have small number of roots and occur near recent shallow slides. Despite the differences of soil features, type of bedrock, grapevine plants age, vineyards row orientation and season collection, a unique relationship between root diameter and root tensile strength has been identified. Root reinforcement, related to the grapevine root system and evaluated using Fiber Bundle Model, shows the lowest values in correspondence of sites characterized by the lowest soil permeability, as in the study case Calcic Gleysols. The sites with these soil features, actually, are also those most affected by shallow instability in the past, indicating that their great susceptibility to shallow landslides. The results of this study also highlight the role played by different amounts of grapevine root reinforcement on the slope stability during rainfall conditions, which could lead to triggering, on the study area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]