Abstract
The aim of this study was to study the impact of crop load on the yield and grape quality of ‘Merlot’ and ‘Vranac’ (Vitis vinifera L.) in Trebinje vineyard. The crop load levels studied in this trial were 9 buds (V1) and 12 buds (V2) per vine at each variety trained on Lenz-Moser bilateral cordon system. The impact was determined by measurements of yield per vine and grape quality characterized by the contents of total soluble solids, titratable acidity, total phenolics, total flavonoids and by total antioxidant capacity. The measured parameters of grape quality of ‘Merlot’ and ‘Vranac’ were not influenced significantly by crop load levels. V2, compared to the V1, showed the potential for increasing grape yield only for Merlot variety under experimental conditions. The results of this study also showed a positive correlation between total phenolics/flavonoids and total antioxidant capacity of grape berries in both varieties, regardless of crop loads applied.
Highlights
The grape yield and quality are influenced by many factors such as climatic conditions, soil chemical and physical properties variety, viticulture management practices, crop load, leaf removal, irrigation, and rootstock-scion relationship (Pachnowska and Ochmian, 2018)
If to many buds are left at winter pruning, the vine will produce many shoots leading to a dense canopy and opposite, if a few buds left, the shoots may grow too vigorously leading to low yield (Collins et al, 2020)
The results of the analysis of yield and grape quality parameters of ‘Merlot’ and ‘Vranac’, depending on crop load treatments are presented in Table 1 and Table 2, respectively
Summary
The grape yield and quality are influenced by many factors such as climatic conditions, soil chemical and physical properties variety, viticulture management practices, crop load, leaf removal, irrigation, and rootstock-scion relationship (Pachnowska and Ochmian, 2018). Among the factors affecting vine growth and development, winter pruning has the greatest impact on the grape yield and quality of the growing season due to its impact on bud fertility and nutrient reserves in grapevine (Qiu et al, 2019). In order to achieve the right balance between vegetative growth and grape production it is essential to determine an optimal crop load for each grapevine variety (Pellegrino et al, 2014). Permanent necessity for achieving optimal crop loads is always present, especially in regions where the connections among pruning practices and grape production are poorly understood
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