ApeX Vigne

ApeX Vigne was developed by the AgroTIC team of Montpellier SupAgro with the support of the Occitanie region in the framework of work carried out for several years in partnership with the French Institute of Vine and Wine and the Chamber of Agriculture of the Hérault.

Apex method and growth monitoring:

The apex method is a simple method to characterize the vegetative growth of the vine. It is based on the observation of the ends of twigs, which are called apices. It consists of observing about fifty apexes and classifying them according to three categories (full growth, slowed growth or stopped growth). The calculation of a synthetic index, called the growth index, then makes it possible to characterize the vegetative growth of the observed zone. The weekly realization of these observations makes it possible to characterize the growth dynamics.

This method has been developed and has been used for several years by the main actors of professional technical organizations around the Mediterranean (French Institute of Vine and Wine, Chambers of Agriculture, Union of Winegrowers Côtes-du-Rhône). By allowing the monitoring of vegetative growth and its dynamics, it offers many applications for the agronomic management of vineyards (monitoring of water stress, monitoring of vigor, etc.).

Interpretation for monitoring water stress:

The main interest of the apex method is the monitoring of the vegetative growth of the vine. Nevertheless, under certain conditions, the study of this growth can also give information on the phenomena which influence it. This is for example the case for water stress. Indeed, the vegetative growth of twigs is the first physiological function to be affected by water stress.

The French Institute of Vine and Wine (IFV) has conducted experiments and built rules to interpret a level of water stress based on observations made on the apex. For this, the IFV has built a large database linking the observations made on the apex with reference measurements of water stress (basal leaf water potentials).