Location: Horticultural Crops Research Unit
Project Number: 2072-21000-057-005-G
Project Type: Grant
Start Date: Sep 1, 2017
End Date: Sep 30, 2020
Objective:
1. Determine the effect of altering vine balance on grape quality.
2. Determine the effect of altering vine balance on wine aroma composition.
Approach:
This experiment will be conducted on 14 vineyards that have already been identified within 13 companies in western Oregon. All sites are productive Pinot noir vineyards of >5 years of age and between 1/3 to 3 acres in size to accommodate volume required for wine production. Experiments will be set up in a randomized complete block design with a minimum of three field replications applied to whole vine rows. Treatments are applied at lag phase (50-55 days post 50% bloom). Data will be collection from a set of at least 10 consecutive vines per experimental plot that are flagged and used for all data and sample collection, including quantification of fruitfulness, lag phase shoot counts and cluster counts pre- and post-thinning, tissue sampling for nutrient analysis at véraison (petioles and leaf blades), pre-harvest fruit sampling, yield components at harvest, fruit sampling at harvest, and pruning weights during dormancy. Impacts of crop level on berry ripening will be assessed from cluster samples collected during at least two time points prior to harvest and measured. At harvest, collect cluster counts and yield weights from reference vines and randomly select a 20-cluster fruit sample in each plot. Fruit samples will be analyzed.
