Alcorso Foundation Dr Don Martin Sustainable Fellowship - Paul Smart 2012

The Alcorso Foundation’s

Dr Don Martin

Sustainable Viticulture

Fellowship

Partners for the 2012 fellowship:

• Conference on the “Biocontrol of Plant Pathogens”

• Visited 22 producers in Champagne, Alsace, Burgundy and England

• Visited Plumpton College, England. Host of the 2016 ICCS

What Did I Do?

Vineyard Comparison

• Size

• Organic Viticulture

• Mechanisation

Biocontrol

• Modes

• Induced Systemic Resistance

Sustainability

• English System

What Did I Learn?

Vineyard - Size

What is the median size of a vineyard in Tasmania?

3 Ha

What is the median size of a sustainable vineyard

in Champagne/Alsace/Burgundy?

10 Ha

Vineyard - Size

3 Ha => 6 Ha

Gilles Ballorin

Domaine Ballorin

Started in 2005 0.6 Ha

• 0.2 Ha was bought

• 0.4 Ha was leased

Now has 5 Ha

• owns some

• leases some

• buys some grapes

We need to have the conversation, What do we want

the Tasmanian Wine Industry to look like in X years

Vineyard – Organics

Every vineyard I visited was using organic practices

Only several were certified

The idea was to be organic

• for themselves

• for their future

• not as a marketing tool


2012 Vintage in Europe

Wet, warm

Stuffed?

Organic methods are less effective at reducing/preventing

disease

Equipment is very important


Random dude in the street, Burgundy


Domaine Parent, Burgundy


Alsace


Stopham, England

Lipco Tunnel

Sprayer


Very little herbicide is used for weed management

Mostly cultivation

With a little mowing


Cultivation: Burgundy and Champagne

• Vine spacing: 1m x 1m

• No room for covercrop

• 100% bare soil

• Equipment?


Cultivation: Domaine Ballorin, Burgundy


Cultivation: Burgundy


Cultivation: Paul Ginglinger, Alsace


Cultivation: Josmeyer, Alsace


Should Tasmania be organic?

Pragmatic Vineyards

Used some synthetic fungicide, still need to get a crop to

get an income

Dogmatic Vineyards

Have disease, reduced crop, reduced quality

Which is the sustainable method?

Vineyard – Mechanisation

Cost of Labour Australia:

$22/Hr

Cost of Labour France:

$11/Hr

Cost of Labour UK:

$9/Hr


Labour costs are the highest input

into vineyards in Tasmania

Reducing the amount of labour

hours will increase our

sustainability

Areas that Tasmania can improve:

• Leaf Plucking

• Shoot Positioning

• Pruning


Leaf Plucking

Domaine Gibourg Robert


Leaf Plucking

Souslikoff Effeuilleuse


Leaf Plucking

Video Souslikoff Effeuilleuse


Leaf Plucking

Contract Rate: ~$1000

Cost of Labour: $22/hr

Speed: 100hrs

Saving: $1,200

And 100hrs!

ERO Roller Defoliator


Shoot Positioning


Shoot Positioning

Video Shoot Positioning


Shoot Positioning

ERO Shoot Binder 250



Cost of Machine: ~$30,000

Running Costs: $60/hr

Speed: 4 km/h

Cost of Labour: $22/hr

Speed: 200 hrs

Repayment Period: 6.5 years


Pruning

One of the two most expensive operations in the

vineyard

Unavoidable in Tasmania

3 main operations:

• Cutting (arm selection and trimming)

• Pulling Out

• Tying Down


Pruning - Cutting

Cost of Machine: ~$2400


Speed: 70 hours (2 weeks)

Cost of Hand Labour: $22/hr




Pruning – Pulling Out

Contractor

Costs: ~$1000

Speed after machine: 210 hrs (6w)

Cost of hand labour: $22/hr

Speed w/o machine: 420 hrs (12w)

Yearly savings: $3600


Pruning – Tying Down

Cost of Machine: ~$2000



Cost of Hand Labour: $22/hr



Pellenc AP25

Questions?

Conference

International Organisation of Biological Control (IOBC)

Phytopathogens Group

“Biological control of fungal and bacterial plant

pathogens”, Reims, 24-27 June 2012

150 Plant Pathologists

And me

Conference

There is a very big drive to find alternatives to chemical

pesticides and fungicides in Europe

Directive 2009/128/EC

Sustainable Use Directive

“establishes a framework for Community action to achieve

the sustainable use of pesticides”

In 2014 Integrated Pest Management will be mandatory

Conference – Biological Control

What is it?

Bugs eating bugs

Trichogramma wasp larvae inside LBAM eggs

Conference – Modes of Action

4 modes of action

• Parasitism

• Competition

•Antibiosis/Antagonistic

• Induced Systemic Resistance

Conference – Parasitism

Bugs eating bugs (Fungi)

Trichoderma is a common genus used for Biocontrol

Tasmanian product Trichoderma koningii Td67

“Colonizer” by Dean Metcalf

Controls Botrytis cinerea through parasitism

Conference – Competition

Aim to outcompete the pathogen by:

a. Adding large amounts of benign microorganism/s

b. Adding a stimulant/nutrient to promote the growth of

benign microorganism/s

Aerated Compost Tea

• Has been shown to reduce the severity of Powdery

Mildew

• Contains large amounts of microorganisms

Conference – Antibiosis (antagonistic)

Pseudozyma flocculosa

Produces a glycolipid called flocculosin, known to have

microbial effect against Powdery mildew in vitro

Commercial product: Sporodex L

Not available in Australia (?)

Conference – Induced Systemic Resistance

(ISR)

“Plants fighting for themselves”

Grapevines have natural Systemic Resistance to pathogens

such as Powdery Mildew

• Older leaves are resistant to infection

• Berries larger than pea size are resistant to infection

• Ontogenic Resistance

How can biocontrol induce resistance?

Conference – ISR

The genome has been mapped

Conference – ISR

The future:

We will able to trick grapevines into using their own

defence mechanisms to protect against common diseases

• it may cost energy

• it may be temporary

English Sustainability System

Plumpton College


Late 2007

• EU put through Wine Reforms to reduce the “wine

lake” including a vine pull scheme

• The UK was approached with cash to pull their vines

• 992 hectares and growing

What the English industry wanted was not cash for a vine

pull scheme but a scheme for training and being sustainable

Enter Wine Skills


www.wineskills.co.uk/sustainability

•A system of self training with mentors and workshops

• System was designed by growers for growers

• Based purely on training

• not regulated

• not audited

• not for marketing purposes


Thank you

?

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Alcorso Foundation Dr Don Martin Sustainable Fellowship - Paul Smart 2012

Education