Patrick Delmarre, a French estate owner from the Bordelais region, has developed the "Viti Tunnel", a rain protection system for rows of vines to protect them from rain and hail. A stainless steel tube with a rollable tent tarpaulin and humidity sensors is set up lengthwise over the rows of vines. If it starts to rain, the tarpaulin automatically unrolls within two minutes and protects the canes tent-like from rain as well as from hail. The sensors are programmed in such a way that they are not activated when dew appears. Delmarre has invested over 50,000 euros in the system since 2017, testing it on prestigious Bordeaux château. In 2019, he equipped 1.5 km of his own vineyards with his development.
According to him, this completely prevented the intense outbreaks of powdery mildew in 2019, while about one third of the unprotected vineyards were infected. During the test at Château Mouton-Rothschild, 99 percent of the vines had been protected, whereas about half of the vine rows in the surroundings had been damaged, despite the use of plant protection.
(uka)