Cold
Hardiness System alerts growers during winter months
Using a sophisticated system they designed, WSU
viticulturist Markus Keller and his team are
measuring the cold hardiness of grapevine. The
system allows them to collect data from buds and
wood pieces from a range of grape varieties in
order to determine “critical” temperatures for
each variety
–
temperatures at which the tissues freeze and are
killed.
The system is now being used as a model for
programs working in grapes and other crops
around the world.
Each week the team adds new information to
their Web site, which growers use to track the
changes in cold hardiness throughout the winter
season. Based on this information, growers
can decide whether to run their wind machines or
use other measures of frost control.
This year, for the first time, Ste. Michelle
Wine Estates is participating in the project.
Ste. Michelle viticulturists collect samples
from their extensive variety collection each
week, and that information is used to supplement
samples collected by Keller’s team.
The service is funded by WSU, the Washington
Association of Wine Grape Growers through the
Washington Wine Industry Foundation and the
Washington State Concord Grape Research Council.
Visit the
Grape Cold Hardiness Web
site: The
site has year-round value for grape growers,
including information on Powdery Mildew,
precipitation, growing degree days, and evapotraspiration.
Want the scientific low down on
how Keller’s team is collecting
cold-hardiness data? Fire up
your browser and visit the American Journal of Enology and
Viticulture to download the
paper by Mills, Ferguson
and Keller.
