Fecha de publicación: 05/10/2024 Fuente: ISHS (International Society for Horticultural Science) Post date: Saturday 5 October 2024
Author:
ISHS Secretariat

Patrick Mdemba is currently a Master’s candidate at the French Associates Institute for Agriculture and Biotechnology of Drylands, The Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sde Boqer, Israel. He works under the supervision of Prof. Noemi Tel-Zur and Prof. Arnon Dag. His research is focused on “Fertilization of table grapes with nitrogen” at the Gilat Research Center, Agricultural Research Organization, Volcani Center, Israel. Nitrogen fertilization is a vital component of vineyard management. However, field studies to gauge the nutritional demand of perennial crops are challenging, due to the high levels of nutrients already present in the soil before experimentation, thereby making it difficult to measure the actual effects of fertilization treatment. The objectives of this study were to examine the specific relationships between N nutrient level, grapevine growth, and productivity in two table grape cultivars: white (‘Early Sweet’) and red (‘Crimson’) during two consecutive seasons (2022 and 2023). For this study, an inert growing system using perlite was utilised to fully control nutrient availability through a fertigation system. The results indicated that leaf area index, evapotranspiration, and dry weight of pruned branches significantly increased with increased N application from low to high (10-100 mg L-1 N), and moderate supply (10-50 mg L-1 N) in ‘Early Sweet’ and ‘Crimson’, respectively. High N utilization efficiency (of more than 70%) was achieved between low and moderate N supply, while more than 60% of N supply was collected as leachates in higher N treatments (above 100 mg L-1 N). Nitrogen application levels were positively reflected in N concentrations in leaf samples with blade analysis providing more consistent results than petiole analysis. The number of primary clusters was significantly reduced with increased N supply in both cultivars. Increased N availability reduced sugar accumulation in developing fruits in both cultivars. The results of this study indicated that precise nitrogen management on ‘Early Sweet’ and ‘Crimson’ varieties can enhance growth, increase yield, and improve fruit quality. This approach also enables better N utilization, resulting in reduced production costs and minimal environmental contamination.
Patrick Mdemba won the ISHS Young Minds Award for the best poster presentation at the XIII International Conference on Grapevine Breeding, Genetics and Management in Turkey in August 2023.
Patrick Mdemba, The Jacob Blaustein Institutes for Desert Research, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Sde Boqer, Midreshet, 8499000, Israel, e-mail: mdembapatrick@gmail.com
The article is available in Chronica HorticulturaeTags: table grapeCategories: Young Minds Award Winners