Precision viticulture in Mediterranean countries: From vegetation vigour and yield maps to spatially and temporally variable vintage

Abstract

In Mediterranean countries, due to warmer and drier environmental conditions, viticulture faces problems such as drought, short biological cycle, and frequent infestations by pests. Precision Viticulture (PV), through spatially variable rate application of crop inputs, enhances grape yield and quality, while reducing operational costs and environmental impact. PV has been a reality in Mediterranean countries since the end of the last century. Proximal/remote sensors such as LIght Detection And Ranging (LIDAR), soil electrical conductivity proximal sensors, and remote sensing from Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) and/or satellites and/or robots can monitor vegetation vigour, thus delineating vineyard Management Zones (MZs), needing specific crop input amounts. MZs enable us to plan either temporally variable vintage in zones having different ripeness periods for producing uniform quality grapes and, therefore, wine, or spatially variable vintage for producing different quality grapes and, therefore, wines. The economic and environmental benefits of PV should be quantified by refining user-friendly data processing software and developing models to better understand and address the within-vineyard spatial variability of crop and soil parameters. Our aim of this review article was to highlight the ways PV can be implemented in Mediterranean countries to face problems such as drought, short biological cycle, and frequent infestations by pests.