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Researchers in the area of Vegetable Production Vegetal of the Department of
Agricultural Production at the Public University of Navarra have been
awarded the prize for the best research in the area of viticulture. The
presentation took place at the V Iberian Congress of Horticultural Science
recently held in Oporto (Portugal). The awarded work, entitled "Recovery of
photosynthetic activity in 4 grape varieties after a hydric stress event",
studied the response to the hydric stress event of the grape, in order to
enable suitable land irrigation policies to be made and actions carried out
while taking into account the peculiarities of each variety, June 2005 by
Inaki Casado Redin.

In concrete, at the Congress, the group received the "Amândio Galhano
Prize", awarded by the Vinos Verdes Region Viticulture Commission.

The V Iberian Congress of Horticultural Science brought together researchers
and experts over a number of days to debate current horticultural topics.
Amongst other aspects discussed were themes such as food quality and safety,
conservation and use of horticultural biodiversity, conservation of the
environment, technology transference and interchange, as well as current
tendencies of consumption, that determine the quality of production,
transformation and commercialisation of horticultural products.

Response to hydric stress

The communiqué from the researchers at the Public University of Navarra
dealt with the theme of the response of a determined species or variety to
the hydric stress. A response that is usually studied by evaluating the
effect after a period of stress, of greater or lesser intensity and
duration, on the physiological activity of the variety. Nevertheless, the
researchers pointed out, "this model of study does not fit in well with the
conditions that are produced on the land, where periods of stress alternate
with others of recuperation through irrigation or rainfall".

The communiqué continues, "the level of recovery of the photosynthetic
activity is evaluated once the irrigation of the four grape varieties was
renewed". Plants grown in inclement weather conditions and where irrigation
was suspended in mid-June were used for the study. The progression of the
hydric deficit in each plant was assessed by means of the daily measurement
of the hydric potential before dawn and, when a plant reached the stress
interval, it was irrigated immediately. After two or four days after the
recovery irrigation, the gaseous interchange was measured, comparing it with
plants that had not suffered stress.

From their results the researchers deduced that "the occurrence of a period
of hydric stress modifies the hydric relations of the grapevine even when
irrigation had been re-established". This effect confirms, "it is not the
same in all the varieties and so it would be of great interest to research
further into this aspect of the hydric relations of the grapevine in order
to adjust irrigation policies on the land to the peculiarities of each
variety".

[www.basqueresearch.com]

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