Dr. Rossdeutsch is the OWRI viticulture postdoc collaborating with Dr. Paul Schreiner, Research Plant Physiologist, USDA-ARS; Dr. Patricia Skinkis, Associate Professor and Viticulture Extension Specialist at OSU, and Dr. Laurent Deluc, Associate Professor. In this seminar, he presented his Ph.D. thesis on scion/rootstock interactions under water deficit conditions before discussing his current research project on nitrogen-driven vigor in grapevines. 

Primarily used against soil-borne diseases and pests, rootstocks have become a powerful tool to manage grapevine growth and improve wine quality in a wide range of climate and edaphic conditions. Rootstocks impact the whole vine physiology by providing water and nutrients to the scion, but the nature of the underlying mechanisms leading to scion growth is still poorly understood. For instance, responses of grafted vines to water stress are not always consistent among vineyards, which suggests a strong impact of environmental conditions in the relationship between the scion and the rootstock.

In Oregon, understanding the root/shoot coordinated growth in the context of nitrogen driven vigor is a critical step to identifying suitable scion/rootstock combination to improve Pinot noir production in Oregon. Biomass allocation between root and shoot involve a complex interaction between carbon and nitrogen resources wherein scion and rootstocks respectively, play the predominant role.

Date: July 7, 2017
Title: Rootstocks: What role do they play in abiotic stress and nutrient uptake?
Presenter: Dr. Landry Rossdeutsch, Research Associate, Dept. of Horticulture, OSU