Thanks to the climate changes we are witnessing, the return of cold weather now represents a considerable risk in viticulture.

Rising winter temperatures in average scale, determines an early opening of the buds in spring.

All this would not be harmful if the temperatures remained constant but, as we are often witnessing, the sudden changes in temperature that occur in these periods are increasingly frequent.

Moreover, with a drop in temperatures of a few degrees the future vegetative development of the plant can easily be compromised, as the young newly formed tissues are unable to withstand exposure to temperatures that are too low for plant physiology.

What are the dangers deriving from cold returns?

Various phenological models demonstrate that this is by now a trend destined to become a constant.

Frequently, these phenomena can involve vast surfaces or even entire territories, with consequences that have repercussions both on an economic level and on the growth and yield of the plant in the future seasons.

The frequency and severity of these sudden changes in temperature represent two parameters of fundamental importance for understanding the need to adopt sustainable and effective prevention measures and, if the climate were to follow the trend of recent years, in the next few weeks the thermometers could drop again below 5 °C and very likely, it will be necessary to intervene to avoid serious damage in the field.

What does this mean?

The thermal decrease leads to freezing of the water present in the vacuoles of the cells of the buds.

This causes an increase in volume which, by breaking the membranes and cell walls, leads in many cases to cell necrosis. As mentioned, since buds contain future flower and leaf tissue, frost can have a major impact on wineries’ annual financial returns.

Prevention is better than cure

The degree of damage depends on the minimum temperature reached and on the duration of exposure to a critical temperature; the rate of temperature drop can affect the effectiveness of a protective action.

The critical temperatures for the vine differ according to the stage of growth: during the winter the dormant buds can resist, thanks to the “hardening” in the endodormancy phase, temperatures below -10°C (up to -20°C), but starting from the next few weeks, buds will be exposed to frost when they are opening and young shoots can be damaged at temperatures only slightly below 0°C.

In correspondence with these circumstances there is a “settling” of the tissues, proportional to the amount of water present in them and to the degree of lignification of the cells completed during the previous autumn.

For this reason it is essential to guarantee a correct nutritional intake also during the post-harvest phase, in order to avoid the risk that late frosts could compromise the survival of the flower buds of the following season.

In this regard, please refer to the article: the benefits of autumn fertilization

Guaranteed cold tolerance and yield with Cifo

As can be seen from the image below, the Cifo field protocol for vines takes into consideration the most important phenological phases in which it is necessary to guarantee a correct nutritional intake.

Field protocol for viticulture

In the circumstances described above (Phase 2), the support of biostimulant products is therefore essential, both to withstand climatic stress and to maintain the physiological balance of the plants.

The Cifo proposal: ERT 23 PLUS and SINERGON 2000

ERT 23 PLUS, is a natural bio promoter of plant metabolism which stimulates bud metabolism, thus encouraging more uniform sprouting and flowering.

Thanks to its special composition, ERT 23 PLUS acts as an osmotic protector, defending cells from damage caused by the cold and promotes plant metabolism, stimulating its growth even in adverse environmental conditions.

ERT 23 PLUS used in the bud breaking/wool bud stage, it stimulates and uniforms sprouting with the following advantages:

more balanced development of the plant; better architecture and photosynthetic capacity; reduction of apical dominance; greater flowering synchrony.

ERT 23 PLUS and SINERGON 2000

SINERGON 2000, a biopromoter of vegetative growth based on plant amino acids and brown seaweed.

SINERGON 2000 and ERT 23 PLUS used in synergy by foliar application from 4-6 cm bunch lenghts, intensify the physiological processes underlying the development of the bunches, which reach larger dimensions and obtain a better structure.

The contribution of nutritional, energy and anti-stress substances optimizes the development of the plant in the pre-flowering phases and helps to overcome abiotic stresses.

Fertilization plan for the olive tree: Nutrition interventions to sustainably stimulate flower induction, improve fruit setting and increase potential yield.

The weeks that have just ended represent that moment of the year when the phase of appearing flower buds has reached its end.

During this phenological phase, it is possible to witness the complete appearance of the characteristic flower buds in the orchard which, grouped in cluster-shaped inflorescences, turn from green to bright white, forming the so-called blossom of the olive tree.

Once the phase of appearing of flower buds is over, the inflorescences now reach their maximum size but the flowers are still closed. Right at this moment, a time window opens which lasts until the second half of June until the complete fruit set.

A moment in which it is necessary to provide the plant with the correct mix of nutritional elements it needs, in such a way as to ensure the correct completion of the flowering phase, to support the biochemical reactions that regulate the subsequent fertilization process of fruit set and the uniformity of growth of the drupe.

The critical aspects that need to be considered to define the nutritional strategy

During the stage of appearing flower buds, various stress factors can directly damage the tissues of the olive inflorescence, with negative repercussions on the final production.

Events such as late colds or sudden temperature changes, for example, can damage the development of the ovary and the stylus, leading to an impoverishment of pollen fertility and flower drops.

Even at the end of this stage, factors such as dry winds and high temperatures can cause dehydration of the stylus and drying of the stigma.

On the other hand, excessive humidity or prolonged rains can compromise the uniformity of opening of the anthers and cause a washout of the stylar tissues even after pollination is complete.

The Cifo strategy to enhance flowering and fruit set.

To optimize these delicate phases, the protocol implemented by Cifo technicians is divided into three consecutive steps corresponding to three different agronomic targets:

• To stimulate and uniform flowering process.
• To ensure regular flower fertilization and fruit set.
• To mitigate the adverse effects caused by abiotic stress factors.

The nutritional specialty successfully used to promote the development and uniformity of inflorescences is Ert 23 Plus.

A bio-activator containing a mix of plant extract, seaweed extract, folic acid, and glycine betaine. Used by the foliar application until the petals fall. This bio-activator is essential during the phases preceding flowering.

It promotes the synthesis of proteins and nucleic acid which are required for cell division so it positively has an impact on the processes of cell division and differentiation. Components such as glycine betaine mitigate the side effects due to the intense metabolic stress of flowering and fruit set.

Boron deficiency	Fruit set phase

To avoid phenomena of poor fruit set and fruit drop it is important to intervene during the phase of pollination.

In this period, factors such as pollen germination and the pollen tube formation can represent a bottleneck for productivity if not properly managed.

For this purpose, the use of Mikrom BZn formulation from pre-flowering up to full flowering is effective in preventing and curing any boron and zinc deficiencies that may occur especially in calcareous soils.

Boron stimulates the fertility of pollen and which, together with Zinc, makes the plant more resistant to environmental stress. It is necessary for the biosynthesis of auxins and lignin.

For both products indicated, the stability of the formulations allows combination with other pesticide products, except mineral oils, oil-based insecticides, fosethyl-al, and dodine, so the application can also be carried out along with treatments against olive fruit fly, olive moth, olive peacock spot, jasmine moth, and other pests and pathogens.

An essential ingredient in food processing.

Nowadays, it is hard to find a product on shelves that doesn’t say “it contains hazelnuts” because this nut is an essential ingredient in food processing, especially sweets.

Hazelnut tree cultivation owes its remarkable success thanks to a lower cost/revenue ratio for farmers and better agronomic performance than the typical crops present in the same area – a perfect marriage for market and producers.

In order to generate income and at the same time guarantee a consistent quality of the production, it is essential to formulate a correct nutritional plan that takes into account, for all areas, the real needs of the cultivation at all stages.

Hazelnut excellence.

The flowering and fruit set phases are one of the most crucial phases which is very important to support plants by biostimulants to enhance plant metabolism and improve resistance to environmental stress.

At Cifo, our priority is to find solutions for better yield and to overcome problems – this way it was developed the “Hazelnut excellence” – initiative, where a working group of experts dedicated to hazelnut tree cultivation share experiences and develop new solutions using Cifo specialties.

Discover our solutions.

The two solutions proposed represent the result of years of experimentation and field trials carried out on hazelnut in different areas of Italy and abroad by the Cifo technical support and crop specialists.

In all areas the use of Ert 23 Plus has shown excellent results becoming the reference specialty for an excellent uniformity of flowering and an improvement of fruit set.

Ert 23 Plus unique formulation allows synergy between its components with biostimulant action.

Ert 23 Plus contains seaweed and plants extracts and enriched with glycine betaine and folic acid that supports cell division processes and plant metabolism during the delicate reproductive stage.

Cold returns and late frosts at the end of March can compromise the physiological conditions of the plant during the flowering and fruit setting phases.

Through the use of Algacifo 3000, based on seaweed extract and other components purely of vegetal origin, the plant is stimulated to react and overcome situations of environmental stress typical the flowering period.

A product with truly unique characteristics on the market: rich in biologically active substances with anti-stress and osmo-regulating function that have demonstrated remarkable results in the field during reproductive stages.

Algacifo 3000 contains high concentrations of vitamins, amino acids, polysaccharides, proteins and enzymes of plant origin with a strong anti-stress effect.

Moreover, Ert 23 Plus contains glycine betaine and well complement the anti-stress action of Algacifo 3000.

Ert 23 Plus and Algacifo 3000 are allowed in organic farming according to the European Regulation.

For more information about the cultivation and to discover the entire nutritional range dedicated to the hazelnuts for each phase of the cultivation cycle, we invite you to contact Cifo.