Revista de Agronom�a (LUZ); Vol 10, No. 2, 1993
La Viticultura en Guadalupe
"Grape culture in Guadeloupe"
Vincent Delaitre and J.P Lyannaz IRFA-CIRAD
Palabras Claves: Vid, Tr�pico, Producci�n, Guadalupe
Widely held in Guadeloupe and in its dependence during the XVIIth century, the grape vine has disappeared slowly and now cover only a ten of ares. Since december 1990, a grape culture programme has been putting into place in Guadeloupe by the Citrus and Fruits Research Institute (IRFA) in order to diversify the local fruit production and reduce the grapevine import, in the order of 600 tons a year.
Trial presentation: The experimental plots are situated in a low rainfall area (=1000 mm/year), with a realy marked dry sea son (January-march), high temperatures (an average of 26�C) and a hygrometry between 60% and 90% (of appendix).
We dispose of a 1,6 ha vineyard, bower and espalier training. The planting rates are 1330 plants/ha for bower and 1100 plants/ha for espalier. We use different rootstocks as the R110, S04, 140, 3309 and varieties as Dattier de Beyrouth, Muscat de Alegandrie, Italia, Ruby Seedless, Centenial, Perlette, Muscat de Hambourg, Alphonse Lavalle�, Chasselas, Super Seedless, Palieri, Danlas, Lival.
Cultural training: The fertilization is realized just after the fructification pruning with some 8-b-24 (600 g/plant) and 18-46 (250 g/plant). Twice a year, we prune to 2-3 buds in spur, but it seems problematic for vigorous or seedless varieties wich do not flower. After pruning, we put some Dormex (cyanamide hydrogen) 7,5% concentrated to raise dormancy.
When berries are 5 mm long, the seedless varieties are treated with some GA3 (0,1 g/I) and we thin out ah of the clusters to make them healthy and not compact. The phytosanitary pressure is important:
*Oidium Sobithane (myclobutanil)
1
treatment / cycle
Sulphur
1 treatment / 15 days
* Mildew Diametan (cymoganil)
Acylon
(metalagyl)
Dithane
(mancozebe)
1 treatment / week
*Erlnose Kelthion (dicofol)
1 treatment / cycle
*Pyralids Dipel (B. thuringiensis)
Baythroid
(cyfluthrine)
3 or 4 treatment/ cycle
A "winter" traitment is executed after the pruning with some Quinophos (parathion methyl) and Oleocuivre (cooper). The first traitment stars with the E stage, to end 15 days before the vintaging. Pyralids (not identify yet) have caused us heavy damages: the ist. larval stage flower abortion. This causes later cluster rot.
Firt results: Compare to ah varieties, the Muscat d'Alexandrie is far from being the most bearing flowers, the most hardy and most sweet variety. It is also the most early maturing with short cycle of 125 days between the pruning and the vintaging. The pruning time inluences the Muscat of Alexandrie floriferousness, even though the pruning type (spur or long wood) does less:
The dry season during february seems to favour a good bud burst and a high average of flower buds. Therefore we recommend to prune in february and then in august.
The way of irrigation (sprinkler/drip) does not se en to influence the flower bud average; on the other hand sprinkler irrigdtion favours weeds growing.
Conclsions: If we will be able to control the phytosanitary restraint in the next futur, the floriferousness is realy insufficient at the present time, to think of growing-more grapevine in Guadeloupe. So we will have to master better the training and the prune.