Meeting on Biodynamic Viticulture June 2011: Summary of the Scientific (...)

Meeting on Biodynamic Viticulture June 2011: Summary of the Scientific Presentations

The 3rd Meeting on Modern Biodynamic Viticulture was held in July 2011 at the Villa Medicea di Cerreto Guidi outside Florence in Tuscany. The meeting’s title was “Comparing Different Scientific Approaches.” The topics covered included:

Biodynamic Agriculture and Local Areas: Portoscuro, Sardinia

Rita Mulas, the meeting’s organiser, discussed the “Polo del Carignano” project in the coastal community of Portoscuso, Sardinia. The project is working to rehabilitate degraded and abandoned mining areas by revitalising local Carignan vineyards using biodynamic viticulture.

Plant Intelligence

Professor Stefano Mancuso, director of the International Laboratory on Plant Neurobiology LINV (www.linv.org) at the University of Florence, gave a compelling talk on plant behaviour. He discussed how plants are sensitive to the environment around them, can process and produce information, communicate with other plants and animals, and take decisions. Beyond that, plants have a degree of sociality.
He based his observations on precise scientific evidence rather than speculation.

Energy in the Vineyard

Leonello Anello, an agronomist with expertise in biodynamic agriculture and the scientific director of the meeting, put forth some basic principals for biodynamic viticulture. He suggested that biodynamic vineyards are determined not so much by the materials involved but, by the distribution of energy between the elements of soil, water, air, and fire.
These four elements occur naturally in vineyards and are not determined by economic or market factors. Biodynamic viticulture methods work to improve the entire energy flow in the vineyard, which includes these land-water-air-fire elements, the growth of fruit or grapes, and wine production.

Biodiversity Among the Vine Rows

Enzo Mescalchin, director of the Agrarian Experimental and Sustainable Agriculture Unit of the Edmund Mach Foundation within the Agrarian Institute of S. Michele all’Adige (www.iasma.it), made a useful practical presentation on soil fertility.
vigneto gestito in biodinamica In addition to the chemical aspect of soil fertility, there is a physical aspect. Physical soil fertility can be negatively affected by the use of heavy machinery, which can cause soil compaction. The biological fertility of the soil, in terms of the biodiversity of the soil’s organic content, is another dimension. The use of cover crops or green manure can improve the biological fertility and organic content of soil up to a depth of 90 cm.

Overall, the 3rd Meeting on Modern Biodynamic Viticulture was useful in terms of the didactic information it offered. Discussion and comparison of different or complimentary scientific approaches, as indicated in the meeting’s title, however, was less than hoped for. Leonello Anello, the scientific director, indicated that debate on different approaches could be better realised in the next meeting.

by Catherine Marquette

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