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The DLR Mosel, the Julius Kühn-Institut (JKI) and the Senckenberg-Gesellschaft für Naturforschung (Senckenberg Society for Nature Research) jointly researched steep slope viticulture on the Mosel in connection with biodiversity for eleven years. In the process, the scientists found more than 170 wild bee species. "It has been shown that there is a surprisingly large diversity of wild bees in the vineyards. This is less due to the vines themselves than to the small-scale structures and the vegetation between the vines, which is attractive to bees," says Dr André Krahner from the JKI.
Butterflies feel equally at home in steep slopes. In the Klotten-Treiser-Moselle Valley alone, the researchers found 58 species of butterflies. According to Germany's Red List, 30 percent of the wild bee species found and 52 percent of the butterflies in the region are endangered. "Steep slope viticulture, especially when laid out in transverse terraces with flower-rich slopes, is a refuge for endangered insect species," says Prof. Dr Thomas Schmitt from the Senckenberg - German Entomological Institute (SDEI) in Müncheberg.
The vines were also examined. In cooperation with the Geisenheim University of Applied Sciences, the scientists took a close look at more than 1,600 old vines planted between 1880 and 1944. They found great differences in characteristics such as must weight, acidity or grape structure. "This genetic diversity is an important source for the adaptation of these classic grape varieties to changing cultivation conditions - for example, to adapt to climate change," says Dr Matthias Porten from the Dienstleistungszentrum Ländlicher Raum (DLR) Mosel.
In addition, research was conducted to find out whether fallow vineyards are a source of infection for blackwood disease, a yellowing disease of the vine. The areas not only provide food for useful insects, but also for the carriers of the disease. "This particular habitat is attractive to diverse heat-loving cicada species, among them the winch-glass-winged cicada and the rare rose-glass-winged cicada, both of which transmit blackwood disease. However, we were able to show that a closed vegetation cover on the fallow land significantly reduces the infection potential," Dr Michael Maixner from the Julius Kühn Institute summarises the results.
The findings of the long-term project were summarised in the guide "Biodiversity in Vineyards" for winegrowers. It is intended to help promote insect diversity, select the right planting material for the respective vineyard and prevent the spread of pests and vine diseases.
The project "Biodiversity in Vineyard Steep Slopes - Interactions between Steep Slope Management and Biodiversity under Consideration of Resource Conservation" was funded by the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture (BMEL).
(ru / Source and photo: JKI)