Cover Crop for a Sustainable Viticulture: Effects on Soil Properties and Table Grape Production

Cover Crop for a Sustainable Viticulture: Effects on Soil Properties and Table Grape Production

Cover crops are increasingly adopted in viticulture to enhance soil quality and balance the vegetative and reproductive growth of vines. Nevertheless, this sustainable practice has been only recently used for table grape viticulture, with results often contrasting. The aim of this study was to asses...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Agronomy (Basel) Vol. 10; no. 9; p. 1334
Main Authors: Gattullo, Concetta Eliana, Mezzapesa, Giuseppe Natale, Stellacci, Anna Maria, Ferrara, Giuseppe, Occhiogrosso, Giuliana, Petrelli, Giuseppe, Castellini, Mirko, Spagnuolo, Matteo
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Basel MDPI AG 01-09-2020
Subjects:
Agricultural practices
Berries
Biodiversity
Biomass
Carbon sequestration
Cellobiase
Common Agricultural Policy
Cover crops
Crop production
Crops
fescue cover crop
Fruits
Glucosidase
Grapes
Growing season
Microorganisms
Nitrogen
Organic carbon
Organic soils
Soil chemistry
Soil fertility
Soil management
soil microbial biomass
Soil properties
Soil quality
Soils
Sustainable practices
Tillage
Vines
Vineyards
Viticulture
Vitis vinifera
Wineries & vineyards
β-Glucosidase
Italy
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:Cover crops are increasingly adopted in viticulture to enhance soil quality and balance the vegetative and reproductive growth of vines. Nevertheless, this sustainable practice has been only recently used for table grape viticulture, with results often contrasting. The aim of this study was to assess the effect of a fescue (Festucaarundinacea Schreb.) cover crop on soil quality, yield, and grape qualitative parameters in a table grape vineyard (cv “Italia”) located in southern Italy, comparing results with the conventional tillage. Soil organic carbon (C), total nitrogen (N), microbial biomass C (MBC), β-glucosidase (BGLU) and alkaline phosphomonoesterase (APME) activities were assessed during three growing seasons (2012–2014) and three phenological stages. The trend of soil chemical and microbiological properties was jointly influenced by the soil management system, growing season and phenological stage. Compared to conventional tillage, cover crops increased, on average, soil organic C, total N, MBC, BGLU and APME by 136%, 93%, 112%, 100% and 62%, respectively. Slight or no effects of cover crops were observed on grape quality and yield, except for 2012 (the driest season), when a yield reduction occurred. This study reveals that cover crops strongly enhance soil quality in the short-term, with potential advantages for grape production in the long-term.
ISSN:2073-4395
2073-4395
DOI:10.3390/agronomy10091334