Sustainable viticulture: The carbon-sink function of the vineyard agro-ecosystem

摘要

In addition to food production, tree crop-based agrosystems can provide other ecosystem services (ES) such as soil fertility maintenance, soil and water retention and landscape preservation. Tree crops can also act as carbon (C) storage facilities and climate change mitigating systems. We focus on the nature of viticulture as a provider of ES, in particular C storage. This study has been carried out focusing on two different wine-grape growing areas in central Italy (Latium region; natural and peri-urban hilly areas) where the vines (Vitis vinifera sativa L., cv Merlot) were cultivated according to two different management techniques (conventional vs organic farming). Grapevine C storage levels were analyzed in the two main vine C pools during the 2011 and 2012 growing seasons, i.e., above-ground and below-ground biomass, in accordance with the Net Ecosystem Production (NEP) methodology. In order to quantify C sequestration at the vineyard level, we determined soil C sequestration and soil functionality through the measurement of Total Organic Carbon (TOC), microbial biomass and soil and grapevine root respiration. To conclude, the net C balance was assessed at both the grapevine and the vineyard scale.