GRAPE PRODUCTION KNOWLEDGE OF VITICULTURISTS AND SCIENTISTS

This paper details the results from research on traditional knowledge of descendants of Italian immigrants about grape production, conducted through semi-structured interviews with five wine producers from the community of Palermo in the Lauro Muller municipality, southern Santa Catarina state, Brazil. According to the respondents, they produce the grape in the same way as their parents and grandparents, using knowledge transmitted orally between generations. The wine producers reported that several factors, like the sun and wind are im-portant for choosing the location for planting the grapevines, and they do not exchange nursery trees with other producers despite close familial ties and friendship. The study concluded that the empirical knowledge of wine producers agrees with the data present in the academic literature. Furthermore, the habit of using own genetic material may be causing the emergence of new vine diseases. Thus, we recommend that growers always use nursery trees free of diseases, obtained from certificate nurseries.