Resistance and resilience to changing climate of Tuscany and Valpolicella wine grape growing regions in Italy

Global climate change poses new challenges for plant species, including new and complex combinations of environmental conditions to which plants should adjust and adapt. Mediterranean ecosystems are recognized biodiversity hotspots, but are also global climate change hotspots due to the concerted action of multiple environmental drivers. The Italian Peninsula presents a wide range of all these site-related elements influencing grapevine performance. From a climatic perspective, it delivers a relatively large set of mesoclimates, spanning from dryer regions, in the inner south, to more humid regions, in the northwest and northeast. Topography and soils are also quite distinct throughout the peninsula, ranging from extended flatland areas to steep mountainous regions, each with very different soil characteristics, which may influence crop selection and settlements in each region. All these elements are reflected in the different varieties grown throughout the peninsula. This study aims to provide an improved assessment of the practical adaptation options for the viticulture of Tuscany and of Valpolicella and what could be the strength and resilience to climate change of grapevine varieties in these areas. According to the models tested, Italian viticulture is able to adapt better than other countries to global warming, as the placing at various altitudes up in the high hills and mountains sets off the mechanism called resilience.