Fertility of buds and pruning recommendation of different grapevine varieties grown in altitude regions of Santa Catarina State, Brazil

ABSTRACT Low bud fertility index is frequently observed in different grapevine varieties grown in high altitude of Santa Catarina Sate; in many cases less than one cluster per bud is observed. The objective of this study was to assess bud fertility of twenty six Vitis vinifera L. varieties and from this information, to recommend the method of pruning more suitable for these varieties in high altitude conditions. The grapevine canes and buds were collected from production vineyards located in São Joaquim, Santa Catarina State, in two consecutive vintages. Fifteen cane cuttings containing 10 n...