There is a lot of talk about which grape varieties will best adapt to climate change. However, less is said about the (“American”) rootstocks, although they do all the work in the soil.
Whenever a producer wants to plant a new vineyard, he has to choose the grape variety and which rootstock he wants it grafted on (the American roots can survive the vine louse, phylloxera, but the European ones cannot). And because of ever-drier conditions in many vineyards, it will become even more critical in the future to choose a suitable rootstock.
The winegrower can choose freely between the 31 rootstocks allowed in France. At least three of them have good drought tolerance. But other factors are also considered when selecting rootstocks, such as resistance to chlorosis (a problem on calcareous soil) and plant vigour.
Researchers will now experiment with 12 new rootstocks to see how they behave with different grape varieties in different regions.
Read more: Mon-Viti
