Climate Change in Northeast Vineyards

Reports at eastern ASEV detail shifting weather patterns
 
Painesville, Ohio -- Climate change is not in the future for the northeastern part of the United States, it's already happening. According to Dr. Alan Lakso, professor in the Department of Horticultural Sciences at Cornell University, a review of climatological data from 1970 to 2000 shows that annual temperatures in New York have warmed 2°F during that 30-year period, and average winter temperatures have increased during the same time frame. In addition, the last spring frost now occurs one week earlier than it did in 1950.

Lakso was the first speaker at the "Wines & Vines in a Changing Climate" symposium that was held on the second day of the American Society for Enology and Viticulture-Eastern Section meeting in Painesville, from July 21-22, 2009. He presented data from New York, New England and for the upper Midwest, all of which showed climate changes and gradual warming. "Not all locations have changed the same amount," Lakso pointed out. "The warming trends tend to be on the coasts and in the Finger Lakes, and not so much on interior sites."

Northeastern winter temperatures have risen 4.4°F during the last 30 years. Because winters are warmer, the number of days with snow cover are dropping across New York and New England. With the Great Lakes and the Finger Lakes being warmer, lake effect snow has increased, but that snow melts more quickly because of the overall warmer weather. In other places with no lake effect snow, snowfall has declined by as much as 20 inches annually.

Patterns of precipitation are changing as well, with average annual rainfall increasing a total of 3 inches since 1950. There is more heavy rainfall, with the number of extreme precipitation events of 2-plus inches of rain in 48 hours going up. In between this more extreme precipitation, the frequency of drought is also increasing when data are compared from 1890 to 2000. If these changes in temperature and precipitation continue, the climate in Boston will become more like that of Baltimore, and the Finger Lakes will have a climate like that of Virginia or even North Carolina.

Exactly what will happen with the climate in the Northeast and the northern Midwest in the next century is extremely difficult to predict, Lakso acknowledged. However, if the trends seen during the past 50 years continue, there will be definite implications for grapegrowers and the wine industry.

Warmer winters with less snow cover may require growers to do more hilling-up in the vineyard, but they also may allow them to plant more tender varieties. More droughts as well as heavy rains will affect site selection: Vineyards will need both excellent drainage and a good water supply; the best sites will have highly drained, gravelly soils with irrigation.

The longer growing season will result in higher total dry matter and yield potential while at the same time creating problems with grapes not hardening off as well before winter arrives. Growers also may see increased weed and pest pressure in vineyards.

Other Climate Change Topics
Three speakers addressed the problem of vineyard site selection. Dr. Tony Wolf, professor of viticulture at Virginia Tech, described the GIS tool available for vineyard site selection in Virginia; Lakso returned to present the new web-based vineyard site evaluation system at nyvineyardsite.org (see "New York Unveils Aerial View of Vineyards"); and Dr. Andrew Reynolds, professor of viticulture at Ontario's Brock University, reviewed geomatic studies that looked at various aspects of a vineyard site such as water status, fruit composition, yield, disease and insect pressure, in order to identify sub-blocks of potentially superior quality within that vineyard.

Larry Brown, professor and extension agricultural engineer at Ohio State University, discussed the basics of planning for and implementing sub-surface drainage in vineyards. Dr. Keith Striegler, director and viticulture program leader of the Institute for Continental Climate Viticulture and Enology Center at Missouri State University, reviewed the advantages and disadvantages of vineyard mechanization and the key considerations for mechanizing an existing vineyard. Greg Berg, viticulturist for Oxbo International, then delved into the economics of mechanization and compared the costs of a vineyard using manual labor and the same acreage with mechanization.

Martin Goffinet honored; scholarships awarded
The ASEV-Eastern Section presented its outstanding achievement award to Dr. Martin C. Goffinet. Goffinet, who is retiring from the New York State Agricultural Experiment Station in Geneva, N.Y., this year, was recognized for his "outstanding research on grapevine anatomy and seasonal tissue development that has increased our understanding of how vines function in response to variable climate conditions and crop management."

A special distinguished service award honored the Moffett/Merletti family, whose contributions to the Eastern wine and grape industry ranged from starting the magazine Eastern Grape Grower in 1975 to providing the impetus for the start of the Association of American Vintners, now WineAmerica, and in recent years the annual auction at Wineries Unlimited raising money for the ASEV-ES scholarship program.

The society's scholarship program awarded eight $1,000 scholarships this year to the following students: Eli Bergmeier, University of Missouri; Linjian Jiang, Ohio State University; Molly Kelly, Virginia Tech; Misha Kwasniewski, Jim Meyers, Michelle Moyer and Becky Nelson, all at Cornell University, and Lisa Wasko, Iowa State University.

The winners of the student paper competition each received $500. The award for the best paper in viticulture, sponsored by National Grape Cooperative, went to Gill Giese, a student at Virginia Tech. Lallemand Inc. sponsored the best paper in enology award, which was presented to Justin Scheiner, a student at Cornell.

Approximately 90 people attended the a nnual meeting, which began with a pre-conference tour of five wineries in northeastern Ohio and continued with contributed and student paper technical sessions.

During the annual business meeting, the results of elections were announced. Imed Dami of Ohio State University is the new chairman-elect. In addition, three members of the board of directors were elected: Peter Bell, Fox Run Vineyards; Hans Walter-Peterson, Cornell Cooperative Extension, and Todd Steiner, Ohio State University. Keith Striegler of the University of Missouri was installed as the incoming chairman at the banquet, and Tim Martinson of Cornell University became past chairman.