Using canopy management to reduce fungicide use and improve fruit composition in white wine grapes

Using canopy management to reduce fungicide use and improve fruit composition in white wine grapes

Summary

In the fourth year of the project, approximately 30 growers met to taste project wines, discuss experiences with CM, and verify outcomes for the project. Full data as well as wines from the replicated experiment and some grower sites were presented. Costs of production and returns were discussed. Outcomes were mixed mostly due to the question of whether the winery purchasing the grapes would pay more for grapes grown with CM practices, as savings on botrycides were only possible in drier years.

Objectives/Performance Targets

Twenty of approximately 65 vinifera grape growers in NY/Northwestern PA will adopt at least one new canopy management practice to improve fruit composition and lower disease pressure, resulting in at least one less fungicide application per season and increased returns of at least $60 per acre in wet years, due to reduced fungicide inputs and improved fruit composition.

Accomplishments/Milestones

1) 50 growers attend 1 of 2 spring meetings (one in Finger Lakes, one in Lake Erie) to learn about impact of canopy management (CM) practices on fruit composition and disease management. Participants will discuss their goals in winegrape production, experience with CM, and how these practices might help them. May 2009. This milestone was met in May 2009 with 40 growers attending 1 of 2 spring meetings (25 growers in Finger Lakes, 15 growers in Lake Erie) about CM. Total growers in attendance was lower than we had hoped, potentially due to the fact that both meetings were held on days of favorable weather for field work in a season when few of those days existed.

2) 35 growers attend 1 of 2 field tours (one in each region) at a research/demonstration site. Grower implementation team demonstrates impact of CM on cluster light exposure and spray penetration. August 2009. This milestone was met in August 2009 when 42 growers attended a tour of the replicated CM study at White Springs vineyard in the Finger Lakes region. We were pleased that we had excellent grower turnout at the meeting due to strong interest in the information presented. At the meeting growers participated in an informal survey of CM practices, indicating that 14% (6 of 42) of growers practiced leaf removal or shoot thinning on their Riesling vines. Unfortunately due to a frost event early in the season in the Lake Erie region we were unable to maintain our grower sites (primary shoots killed by early frost), and as a result could not host a meeting in the Lake Erie region.

3) 30 growers attend 1 of 2 tastings (one in each region) to sample wines from grower CM research/demonstration sites, estimate price points of wines for use in economic analyses. Growers provide testimony about their experiences with CM the previous year, evaluate whether their goals were met, and discuss similarities/differences in results among sites. June 2010. This milestone was met in August 2010, when 34 growers (25 in Finger Lakes region, 9 in Lake Erie) attended tastings, sampled wines from grower demonstration sites, and estimated price points for use in the economic analysis. We combined the meeting for this milestone with that for milestone #4, and presented economic analyses based on the 2009 data from grower sites. A large proportion of growers were interested in testing CM practices based on wines tasted, we are currently working to get firm commitments from those growers.

4) 25 growers attend discussion of economic impact of CM practices, study data produced in collaboration with grower implementation team. Team members share economic analyses of practices at their sites. 20 participants agree to adopt at least one CM practice for next year; group discusses which practices might suit regions/sites. December 2010. This milestone was met in August 2010 as it was combined with Milestone #3 (see above).

In 2011, we knew of at least 15 growers who experimented with a CM practice, and heard through the grapevine of at least 5 other growers who were experimenting but did not identify themselves to us.

5) 20 growers who adopted at least one new practice attend discussion to verify outcomes (improved wine quality, reduced fungicide use, improved economic returns) and share information concerning success of specific CM practices. This milestone was met in August 2012 when we had a live wine tasting/webinar for the industry. Approximately 30 growers attended the two live tastings, and another 17 growers attended via webinar.

Impacts and Contributions/Outcomes

Our target is to have 20 of approximately 65 vinifera grape growers in NY/Northweatern PA adopt at least one new canopy management (CM) practice to improve fruit composition and lower disease pressure, resulting in at least one less fungicide application per season and increased returns of at least $60 per acre in wet years due to reduced fungicide inputs and improved fruit composition.

In the first three years of our project, 5 grower-cooperators implemented at least one new CM practice and have shown strong interest in continuing with the CM practices. Grower interest in our studies have been extremely strong, with 42 growers participating in field tours, and 34 growers in wine tastings followed by price point estimations for wines made from CM treatments.

The full webinar recording can be found here:
http://grapesandwine.cals.cornell.edu/cals/grapesandwine/outreach/viticulture/webinars.cfm

In 2011 at least 15 growers experimented with the CM practices, and 300 industry members (winemakers and growers) learned about the results of the first two years of the replicated study at an industry meeting. There is a tremendous amount of interested in these practices, as our data indicated that if consumers were told prior to tasting the wine that shoot thinning and/or leaf removal could reduce fungicide use, they were willing to pay up to $1.50 more per bottle of wine produced using those practices. (Unfortunately once they tasted the wine, that price premium disappeared!).

From 2009-2011, approximately 600 industry members had the opportunity to read summaries of our projects and followed fruit chemistry of Riesling during ripening in some of our grower side-by-side comparisons through the Veraison to Harvest newsletters.

Approximately 30 growers attended our live tastings of wines from this project in August 2012 (plus 17 growers via webinar, including thorough economic analysis of practices and economic returns) to verify outcomes of their experiences with CM practices. Outcomes were mixed mostly due to the question of whether the winery purchasing the grapes would pay more for grapes grown with CM practices, as savings on botrycides were only possible in drier years.

The full webinar recording (unfortunately not including grower discussion during the one-hour tasting prior to the webinar) can be found here:
http://grapesandwine.cals.cornell.edu/cals/grapesandwine/outreach/viticulture/webinars.cfm

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