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Congratulations, Julia, on a great post and amazing inside information. It is a shame that growers have allowed some old vines with deeply established root systems to disappear, as some of the most important scientists believe that a well-established root system is the secret to the vine’s resilience.
Regarding continuous irrigation, I have my doubts. Who knows how an unirrigated vineyard for decades would respond? And when the gini is outside the bottle, who will control it, and how? Continuous irrigation, as we know, promotes shallow root growth and prevents roots from exploring the soil, nutrients, etc.
Regarding replanting the vineyard, I think this should be the scope of a symposium with foreign and Greek scientists, where all views can be discussed. There should be a common link, not accusations, between people. Finally, an interesting research sheds light on the importance of kouloura, but some choose to ignore it. Research is A comparative study on training systems and vine density in Santorini Island: Physiological, microclimate, yield and quality attributes.
Efstratios Guillaume Xyrafis, Gregory A. Gambetta, Katerina Biniari
The fascinating findings show that the basket-shaped system is clearly superior to the VSP system. It showed:
better water potential, especially approaching harvest (note from the research that the VSP system is more stressed);
better photosynthesis per leaf during the veraison period (i.e., the leaf operates better in the basket-shaped system);
better behaviour towards the temperatures of exposed grapes during midday hours,
and more yields as well (that no one expected)
As I wrote in an article in 2024 on www.karakasis.mw ‘‘The main issue is the pruning method, which leaves too many buds that not only do not increase yields but also exhaust the plants and have the exact opposite result, comments Professor of Viticulture, Dr Stefanos Koundouras. Instead of 4 canes, a pruning of 2 canes could be done with 8-10 buds each, which would be more productive. Having over 30 buds per plant is too many for the basket-shaped system, resulting in many not opening, and in the end, each kouloura has fewer bunches than it could. The education of local agronomists is crucial, believes Dr. Koundouras.’’
I am afraid that the answer doesn’t lie in increasing yields through irrigation or different training systems. The question is different. It needs a holistic approach and one single strategy rather than 15 different tactics. Yet I am happy that producers have recognised this as point zero for Santorini. And they are acting, hopefully wisely.
Yiannis Karakasis MW
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