Relationship Between Susceptibility to Botrytis Bunch Rot and Grape Cluster Morphology in the Vitis vinifera L. Cultivar Albarino

The grapevine (Vitis vinifera L.) cultivar Albarino is well adapted to damp climatic conditions in northwestern Spain and is of great economic importance in the area. The damp, mild conditions of this region are, however, also optimum for the development of fungi such as Botrytis cinerea that attack grapevines. Different 'Albarino' clones were found to vary in susceptibility to infection. Morphological differences in the clusters, berries, and rachises of these clones were then sought and their relationship with this susceptibility examined. One of the 14 clones studied-with the shortest pedicels and the smallest berries-was clearly more resistant to this fungus.