News

VISCA Final e-Conference and the Way Forward

On 15th December 2020, VISCA Final Conference was held virtually to present the results of the project and the way forward. The conference attracted around 60 participants with a variety of profiles: viticulturists, wine producers, scientists, agricultural communities, software providers, entrepreneurs, media, among others who connected to the e-conference from 10 countries: Belgium, France, Greece, Italy, Israel, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Tunisia and the UK.

The e-conference started with a welcoming statement from the project coordinator (METEOSIM) by Josep Sole Maria and the CEO of METEOSIM Oriol de Tera who opened the floor to the two guest speakers from the European Commission: Sasa Zavadlav (VISCA project Officer) and Marjan Van Meerloo, Directorate General for Research & Innovation. They both presented 'R&I contribution to the Green Deal objectives: Climate Action'.

After that, a session on VISCA presentation and results was organized. A short presentation of VISCA was made by the project Coordinator Josep Maria Solé. Then, Claudio Rossi from LINKS  Foundation made a short live demo of the VISCA Decision Support System (DSS) & its added value. The DSS is a Progressive Web Application which integrates climate and agricultural models with farmers’ management specifications to design short practices, medium- and long-term adaptation strategies to climate change. The live demo showed the integrated dashboard of the DSS with its 3 main widgets (phenology, sugar accumulation, irrigation and weather forecasts) as well as the features in relation to the map-based visualization. Later, the key results of the validation of the DSS and the climate services as well as the outcomes from the agronomic techniques: crop forcing and shoot trimming were illustrated by Omar Garcia from IRTA. VISCA solutions were demonstrated in 3 sites in ItalyPortugal and Spain . An interactive round table with end-users representing Codorniu (Xavier Bordes), Symington (Fernando Alves) and Mastroberardino (Antonio Dente) was part of this session where they shared their feedback from the implementation of VISCA solutions.

Read more...

VISCA Project Hosts a Successful e-Workshop!

On 29th October 2020, VISCA consortium organized an e-Workshop to present the latest release of VISCA Decision Support System (DSS) & its added value through a live demo. The DSS is a Progressive Web Application which integrates climate and agricultural models with farmers’ management specifications in order to design short practices, medium- and long-term adaptation strategies to climate change. The live demo showed the integrated dashboard of the DSS with its 3 main widgets (phenology, irrigation and weather forecasts) as well as the features in relation to the map-based visualization.

Furthermore, the preliminary results and key findings were presented from the demonstration sites in Italy, Portugal and Spain in terms of the validation of the DSS as well as the results from the agronomic techniques: crop forcing and shoot trimming. In addition to that, the commercial opportunities and exploitation options were briefly discussed.

Read more...

New scientific article published: The pitfalls of water potential for irrigation scheduling

A new scientific article has been published entitled "The pitfalls of water potential for irrigation scheduling".

Abstract: The water potential (Ψp), has been widely used as an indicator of plant water status for irrigation management purposes. The simple infrastructure needed for its measurement and its direct relation to basic plant physiological processes, have contributed to the popularity of the methodology. When used for irrigation scheduling, it is commonly assumed that an unavoidable relationship exists between plant transpiration (T), soil water content and Ψp. Nevertheless, it is worth remembering that variations in Ψp are not solely related to changes in soil water content, but are also an expression of the interaction between the plant and its environment. We used a soilplant-atmosphere-continuum (SPAC) model to highlight the importance of considering such interactions through a series of in silico experiments. Our analysis shows that evaporative demand, the hydraulic architecture of the plant, and the texture and depth of the soil play key roles in the final Ψp observed. To establish irrigation programs based on Ψp, without considering the environmental and plant factors that influence it, can create the paradox of having a plant that suffers greater water stress even when high irrigation volumes are applied. The conclusions from our in silico analysis provide some warnings that should be considered when using Ψp to schedule irrigation.

Download the full article from here

Read more...

Join us at VISCA e-workshop, 29 October 2020

VISCA e-workshop: Discover how VISCA DSS supports viticulturists in climate change adaptation
(Registration is open)

Date: 29th October 2020
Time: 10:00 am -12:00 pm CET (2 hours)


Our consortium is pleased to invite you to 'VISCA e-workshop' to be held online on Thursday, 29th October 2020 from 10:00am-12:00 pm CET. The e-workshop aims to bring wine growers, agronomists, scientific community, commercial partners and others to discover the latest release of VISCA Decision Support System (DSS), its added value and how it supports viticulturists in adapting to climate change. Also, the commercial opportunities and the exploitation of the tool will be discussed.
VISCA e-workshop is expected to be interactive with feedback collection and Q&A sessions during presentations. Registration to the e-workshop is open until 28 October 2020 [click here]. After registration, the link to connect to the meeting will be sent. 

Agenda:

  • Short introduction on VISCA project
  • Presentation of the VISCA DSS (phenology, irrigation and weather forecasts information widgets) 
  • Presentation of results achieved, key finding from the demonstration sites
  • VISCA commercial strategy & opportunities
  • Conclusions
Read more...

3 VISCA deliverables now available for download!

VISCA project has published recently 3 new public deliverables related to the analysis of climate projections at the European scale and particularly at the demosites of the project, report on a full year application of the CS-DSS and VISCA booklet presenting preliminary results.

You may download them below:

Read more...

XII International Symposium on Integrating Canopy, Rootstock and Environmental Physiology in Orchard Systems - POSTPONED

Event Details:

  • Date: 14-16
  • Location:  Vila Real, Portugal
  • Register

Every 4 years, the ISHS working groups of Rootstock Breeding and Evaluation organize a worldwide symposium at which advances in a range of research topics are presented and discussed. This year, the “XII International Symposium on Integrating Canopy, Rootstock and Environmental Physiology in Orchard Systems” will be held in Wenatchee (Washington State), USA. 

Read more...

IVDP Congresso Douro & Porto 2020 - Memória com Futuro

Event Details:

  • Date: 
  • Location: Porto, Portugal
  • Register

Sustained in memory with our eyes on the future, we will trace new directions. The Douro & Porto - Memória com Futuro Congress is projected as a scientific and cultural event that will launch in the future the secular memories of the Douro Demarcated Region. The challenges of the present and the purpose of configuring and projecting a prosperous future lead us to revisit the foundations of memory. In this way, a bridge between memory and the future will guide this congress.

Read more...
Subscribe to this RSS feed

This project has received funding from the European Union's Horizon 2020 research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 730253.