Abstract
The objective of this work was to estimate the influence of climate variability on viticultural zoning and variety regionalisation in China in the past 50 years. A multicriteria climatic indices system, which includes Frost-Free Season (FFS), Dryness Index (DI), and Extreme Low Temperature (ELT), was used to define climatic suitable areas and classify different climate zones for wine grape-growing in China. The Accumulated Effective Temperature (AET) was used as an index of variety regionalisation. Indices were calculated based on daily climatic observations from national ground weather stations throughout China from between 1967 and 2016. The variation trends were analysed by Sen’s slope and Mann-Kendall non-parametric tests in 13 representative wine growing sites. Based on the studied criteria, the suitable viticultural zone exhibited a continuous northward expansion with an average increase of 0.204 million km2/decade, largely due to increasing FFS. A significant increase of FFS was detected in most representative sites, with almost no detectable change of DI during the growing season. The analysis also revealed that the North East Region, Inner Mongolia Region, and Xinjiang Region are the three most profitable wine regions. Movement of the soil-burying line was limited to Shandong and Hebei provinces. Although the suitable viticultural zone increased, the data also revealed a decrease in the area for high quality wine production when considering varietal suitability. These results have important implications for understanding both new opportunities and challenges under changing climate and the latter’s effects on viticultural viability in China. They can also help guide stakeholders to develop adaptive strategies for maintaining the profitability of currently used regions and for developing new regions for viticulture.
Highlights
There are wide concerns about climate change and its potential impacts on different aspects of human life, especially agriculture, which is extremely vulnerable to climate variations (Howden et al, 2007; Nelson et al, 2009; Piao et al, 2010)
We assessed the impact of recent climate change on Chinese viticulture by analysing the interdecadal variation of the distribution of the suitable Frost-Free Season (FFS) zone, the suitable Dryness Index (DI) zone, suitable viticultural zone, soil-burying line and variety regionalisation
The recent climate change of the past 50 years has resulted in an obvious northward movement of the suitable viticultural zone
Summary
There are wide concerns about climate change and its potential impacts on different aspects of human life, especially agriculture, which is extremely vulnerable to climate variations (Howden et al, 2007; Nelson et al, 2009; Piao et al, 2010). Vitis vinifera is the most important grape species to be used for wine making and is of high commercial value. This species is highly sensitive to climate conditions, and is distributed in a relatively narrow climate niche, which is traditionally located between the latitude of 30-50 °N and 30-40 °S (Schultz and Jones, 2010). Wine grapes may be more susceptible to the effects of a changing climate Studies on both climate change and viticulture mainly started in the 1990s, and an increasing number of papers expressing concerns about climate change are being published (Marx et al, 2017). Several studies have reported shifts of climate patterns in several wine regions based on different climatic variables and key bio-climatic indices (Briche et al, 2014; Fraga et al, 2016; Hall and Jones, 2009; Hannah et al, 2013; Lereboullet et al, 2014; Ramos et al, 2008; Schultze et al, 2014)
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
