18200 - Viticulture Technique

Academic Year 2024/2025

  • Teaching Mode: Traditional lectures
  • Campus: Cesena
  • Corso: First cycle degree programme (L) in Viticulture and Enology (cod. 8527)

Learning outcomes

The course provides updated technical and scientific knowledge aimed to identify proper cultivation areas for grapevine  and strategies for designing and managing sustainable vineyards according to agroecology and agroforestry. Students will acquire the ability to perform adequate choices at planting, in young and mature vineyards, in relation to the enological goals, respecting ecosystems and land, by interacting with the stakeholders and communities of the grape and wine sector, landscapes, territories, rural communities. Students will learn to identify, describe and solve agronomical problems through methodologically proper approaches. The theoretical knowledge, together with technical abilities, will facilitate the integration in the grape and wine sectors. The agroecological transdisciplinary olistic vision will promote the development of soft skills, useful for formulating critical proposals of "One Health" solutions inspired by Global Citizenship.

Course contents

Vineyard establishment. Grapevine soil and climatic requirements. Pre-planting operations. Hydraulic-agricultural soil arrangements. The art of dry stone walling. Windbreaks. Interventions to prevent the effects of extreme climatic events. Planting. Relevance of Biodiversity and Epigenetics. Safeguard and valorization of grape biodiversity. Local and international grape cultivars. "Resistant" cultivars. Relevance of the choice of rootstocks and cultivars. Intercropping between genotypes of Vitis and with other woody crops. Effects and mode of actions of landscape biodiversity. Terroir  Zoning. Grape cultivation in Mediterranean, continental, tropical and subtropical areas. Viticulture in areas of vulcanic origin. The millstones of the Mediterranean. Historical and heroic vineyards. Establishment of low-cost vineyards. Restoration of abandoned vineyards and valorization grape products. Case studies.

Nutrition and Fertilization. Physiology of nutrition. Nutrition of grape rootstocks and cultivar. Nutrional aspects of plant species of interest for viticulture. Rhizosfera, root systems, mychorriza. Flows of nutrients and carbon in the vineyard. Observations and analysis of soils and plants. Mineral deficiencies and toxicities: identification, prevention and management. Role of silicon in viticutural systems. Criteria and strategies for fertilizazion. Relevance of scientific knowledge for preventing environmental and health risks. Environmental monitoring of fibrous zeolites. Case studies.

Soil management. Tillage. Grassing. Green manure. Mulching. Weeding. Permaculture. Intercropping. Evolution of soil management. Development, implementation and management of innovative sustainable strategies. Case studies.

Management of water resources. Acquisition, uptake and translocation of water. Soil water availability. Water consumption of the vineyard. Monitoring of vineyard water status. Visual assessment. Response mechanisms to water and other abiotic stresses in grapevine. Rootstocks and varieties with high water efficiency. Agronomic strategies and systems aimed to reduce water consumption and increase tolerance to water stress. Irrigation strategies and techniques. Bioirrigation. Waterlogging and flooding. Water education for sustainable development in viticoltura. Case studies.

Winter and summer pruningCriteria and techniques for pruning young vines. Technical aspects associated to grapevine physiology. Vine reactions to different pruning practices. Criteria and techniques for pruning mature vines. Branched pruning. Bud fertility and bud load. Summer pruning practices and their physiology. Mechanical pruning. Case studies.

Training systems and vine distances. Main training systems. Description and pruning. Criteria for choosing the training systems in relation to cultivar, environment, agronomic techniques. efficient use of natural resources. Criteria for choosing vine distances. Behaviour and performances of the main training systems. Conversion of training systems. Training systems for mechanical harvest. Case studies.

Ripening disorders and strategies for their prevention. Strategies for contrasting the effects of the climate change and abiotic stresses on vine physiology and reducing the uncoupling between berry technological, phenolic and aromatic maturity. Case studies. 

Harvest. Choice of harvest time and techniques. Chemical and sensorial analysis of berries. Manual and mechanical harvest. Post-harvest management. Case studies.

Agroecological, agroforestry, organic and biodynamic viticulture. Principles of agroecology. Application of ecological concepts and principles to the management and design of sustainable and -resilient agroecosystems inspired to diversified models of traditional agriculture based on biodiversity. Efficient use of natural resources. Gaining in-depth knowledge on grape, plant and animal biodiversity. The wild grapevine. Medicinal and aromatic plants. Relevance of the landscape matrix. Viticulture and forests. Interactions among plants, humans and animals in agrecosystems and landscape. Agroforestry systems for grapevine. Tree and shrub species of interest for agroforestry systems: olive, manna ash, maple, helm, mulberry, fig, almond, holm oak, strawberry tree, cherry, chestnut, hazelnut, walnut, etc. PDO safeguaring and promoting agroforestry viticultural systems. Holistic apiary. Bats. Role and monitoring of VOCs in agroecological systems. Assessment of the agroecological status of viticultural systems. Biodistricts. AgroEcological Lighthouses. Globally Important Agricultural Heritage Systems (GIAHS). Development of soft skills and olistic vision, functional to the critical proposal of “One Health” solution inspired by Active Citizenship. AgroEcology and Innovative Education: International Collaborations on AgroEcology and Agroforestry. Convivial tasting of selected wines obtained in agroecological and agroforestry viticultural systems.  Case studies.

Site-specific viticulture and advanced analytics. Knowledge and management of spatial/temporal variability. Remote sensing. The Sentinel satellites. Proximal sensing. Sensory detections. Case studies.

Readings/Bibliography

Notes taken at lesson.

Multimedial material available on the teaching platform.

Scientific and dissemination papers advised by the Professor during the course.

Some books to be consulted will be indicated at the beginning of the course.

Teaching methods

Classroom and outdoor lessons followed by critical discussion. Seminars for updating and gaining deep knowledge on specific subjects. Field training, tasting of selected wines produced in AgroEcological Lighthouses cooperating with the Course. Educational visits to viticultral farms.

Program of Transdisciplinary Educational Tours:

1. Farm Ca' di Sopra (Marzeno, Brisighella, RA) and Organic Farm  Francesconi Paolo (Borgo Tuliero, Faenza, RA). Wednesday 26 February 2025 (h 10-17).

2. Organic Farm Tenuta Palazzona di Maggio (Ozzano dell’Emilia, BO) and Common Good Fattoria del Dono (San Lazzaro di Savena, BO). Wednesday 5 March 2025 (ore 10-17).

3. Organic Farm Fondo San Giuseppe (Brisighella, RA), Organic Farm Villa Papiano, Organic Farm Ronchi di Castelluccio and Organic Farm Torre San Martino (Modigliana, FC). Wednesday 23 April 2025 (ore 10-18).

4. University of Maribor and Maribor viticultural areas (Slovenia) (21-23 May 2025).

Certificato of Attendance to the Course on Branched Pruning and to the Program of Transdisciplinary Educational Tours. 

Transdisciplinary planning, presentation and discussion of an innovative agroforestry viticultural systems (group work).

Assessment methods

The knowledge of the topics presented in the lesson and during the practical activities and the verification of the acquired competences provide a practical test and an oral test.

The practical test takes place in the field and consists in describing the components of the viticultural systems, describing and carrying out cultivation operations, taking motivated decisions about the cultivation interventions considered appropriate in the vineyard. The practical test is outdated if the student proves to know the viticultural systems and their main agronomic problems, to be able to carry out and modulate choices related to vineyard establishment and management.
The passing of the practical test (without voting) confers the suitability, essential requirement to be able to access the oral test. Suitability is valid throughout the current academic year.
The oral test is evaluated by a score in thirtieth. During the oral test the student will address the topics discussed in the lesson (available in the texts recommended for the study and in the didactic material presented) and be evaluated on the basis of the following criteria: (i) knowledge, understanding and deepening of topics covered; (ii) critical and exhibition capacity; (iii) Correctness of technical-scientific language. The oral test may have a maximum score of 30 points, possibly with honors. Knowledge gaps and/or inappropriate language will lead to an insufficient vote.

During the oral test, the student will also present and discuss the farm case study.

Appeals are proposed within the specific windows defined in the course of study and students can book for the oral examination test exclusively using the modalities provided by the online system Alma exams. For any information about how to book, please connect to: https://almaesami.unibo.it/almaesami/welcome.htm.
Students who are entitled can contact the teacher to agree on a possible out-of-call examination.

Teaching tools

Educational vineyards. AgroEcological Lighthouses managed with local and international partner. Agroecological Agroforestry Farm "Fattoria del Dono" (San Lazzaro di Savena, Bologna). University laboratories. Unibo Teaching Platform. Updated scientific and dissemination publications. 

Links to further information

http://www.unibo.it/docenti/adamo.rombola

Office hours

See the website of Adamo Domenico Rombolà

SDGs

Quality education Responsible consumption and production Climate Action Life on land

This teaching activity contributes to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals of the UN 2030 Agenda.