Downy mold and fires, the risks for the Sicilian grape harvest

Peronospora and excessive climatic conditions have positioned the Sicilian vineyards to the take a look at, hard and with an predicted drop of up to -35% in a few regions. The satisfactory of the grapes, explains Assovini, could but continue to be intact. The longest harvest in Italy, on common over one hundred days, this year will begin ten days later than the 2022 antique.

Torrential rains in May and June, excessive warmness in July, fires and the presence of fungal assaults have made the island’s vineyards a battleground for farmers, but thanks to the go back of cooler temperatures, the initial drop, anticipated up to 40% in a few regions, it could be less.

We will start in Western Sicily, with the gathering of the glowing base, after which continue with the worldwide varieties which include Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, followed by using the local vines. The producers of Etna will near this long Sicilian harvest at the end of October.

A unique harvest

“What makes the Sicilian grape harvest unique – says Mariangela Cambria, president of Assovini Sicilia – is the form of Sicilian areas. Each territory has particular climatic situations and soils that translate into the notable variety and type of Sicilian wine production. About one week from the beginning of the harvest, it's miles nonetheless difficult and untimely to make accurate estimates on production. Sicily really demonstrates its capacity to control the effect of weather change, way to more and more sustainable agriculture and agronomic strategies, by means of specializing in excellent and not quantity.” .

Assovini’s image suggests an brilliant fine of grapes for western Sicily, that have no longer had troubles with powdery mildew or botrytis. The warmth has worn out about 40% of the grapes, but the unburned ones are regaining power within the cool temperatures. “The effect of downy mold became avoided through the climate huts, that have the ability to electronically suggest the opportunity of the sickness, keeping off irreparable harm”, explains Filippo Buttafuoco, viticultural technician of Cantine Settesoli.

In the Regaleali wine-growing place, within the province of Palermo, the months of March and April, which have a tendency to be dry and bloodless, led to a delay in standard budding of about 10 days, which “made it extra viable – give an explanation for Lorenza Scianna and Laura Orsi , winemakers of Tasca d’Almerita – the following duration become very wet but tendentially bloodless, and made the stress of vine illnesses, such as downy mold, much less invasive”.

“Currently – they hold – the vines have adequate foliage, they may be wholesome and there is a decrease in average temperatures which shows a great ripening of the grapes beginning from the veraison of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay that is taking area in nowadays. With regard to quantities , additionally the Sallier property, in Camporeale, have to respect the business enterprise’s historical averages however it's miles nonetheless early to sing victory”.

The properly vegetative cover “protects the grapes from feasible burns and enables to hold aromas and freshness. Finally, in Mozia, the island is little influenced via the climatic conditions of the mainland, the sapling must ripen right now after August fifteenth with quantities that fall within the ancient averages of Mozia and with healthy and crunchy grapes”.

The problems inside the southeast

In the south-east of Sicily the 2023 harvest might be “one of the maximum difficult nowadays”. “This yr, aside from the torrid heat of these days – says the producer Arianna Occhipinti – we had torrential rains and robust gusts of wind within the months of May and June, vital for the flowering of our grapes, climatic conditions that added the tough paintings that we supply on each day with my team”.

The principal enemy is downy mould: it has induced “good sized harm for approximately 30-35% of our future manufacturing; the remedies of sulfur and copper, the most effective ones we do within the vineyard, in better concentrations were now not enough to incorporate the problem. We could have in reality a decrease harvest than the 2022 harvest. However, this does not imply that the great of the grapes could be questioned, on the contrary, probable we can have much less quantity but greater quality”.

“In Vittoria – underlines Patricia Toth of Planeta – it is important to underline the placement and the soil of the vineyards. We are on the slope with a pure sandy higher layer, which overlooks the ocean, above Marina di Acate, in which precisely the sand and the motion of the The air hasn’t given manner to steady humidity. We anticipate good productions consisting of for Nero d’Avola and additionally for Frappato, retaining the vineyards below close commentary to test for the presence of scale insects and leafhoppers. In Noto, as normally in the course of the island , up to now we take into account about every week or maybe 10 days of put off within the phenological levels, with healthful and really promising grapes”.

Downy mildew had to surrender on Etna. Here till the cease of June there had been low temperatures and continuous rains, consisting of to make interventions in the vineyard hard, accompanied by the extreme warmness of the stop of July with reduced temperature tiers between day and night and hot winds, but “thanks to the very draining volcanic sands , at high altitudes and steady air flow, there was no presence of the fungus and, in spite of the high temperature peaks, the plant life preserve nicely”, explains Maria Carella, oenologist at Cantine Nicosia, on the south-east side of Trecastagni, Zafferana and Santa Venerina.

“On the northern slope of Etna – confirms Toth – downy mold is beneath control way to the arrival of warmth and high temperatures. In the high areas, round 900 meters, we've got extraordinary grapes thanks to the different air flow of these areas and also to the soil shape.