Vanden Heuvel, Justine E.

Cornell Faculty Member

Positions

Associate Professor, Horticulture (HORT), College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS)
Assistant Professor, Horticulture (HORT), College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS)

As an Associate Professor in the Department of Horticulture, I`m actively involved in both research and teaching. My research focuses on optimizing flavors and aromas in wine grapes, and improving both the environmental and economic sustainability of wine grape production systems in cool climates. I teach several undergraduate courses in Viticulture.

Websites

Enology and Viticulture Undergraduate Program

Affiliations
Research
Publications
Teaching
Service
Background
Other
View All

member of graduate field

Horticulture

research overview

Advancing the science of horticulture using both traditional and novel approaches to optimize crop performance is the long-term goal of my research. It is my hope that this research will provide a meaningful contribution to the broader agricultural sciences through potential application to other cropping systems, and to viticulture through improved cultural practices and wine quality. As a function of this, my program is designed to sustain and invigorate the rapidly expanding Northeastern grape and wine industry by producing top-quality research with worldwide relevance. In response to the broad needs of the grape and wine industry, my program has established a strong focus on multi-disciplinary and collaborative approaches. The following long-term objectives of my research program have been shaped by the principles discussed above.
Goal 1: Optimizing winegrape production using computational tools Vineyard managers and wine makers employ a variety of operational field targets to guide cultural practices, particularly with respect to canopy architecture and canopy management. However, these targets lack precision in that they are often broad (e.g., a general effort to keep clusters exposed) or exceedingly difficult for growers to quantify and implement based on their specific production environment (e.g., maintaining a leaf area to fruit ratio of 7 to 14 cm2 per gram of fruit). My lab has developed quantitative methods for precisely characterizing and sampling grapevine canopies. These highly quantitative, multi-disciplinary response models are the foundation for the applied production models we are also developing. The applied production models implement precise quantitative targets for optimizing winegrape production.
Goal 2: Determining how ecophysiological factors affect grape flavors and aromas It is difficult to predict the impact of viticultural practices on flavors and aromas without understanding how a broad range of ecophysiological factors influence vine performance and fruit composition, as any change in viticultural practices generally impacts vine microclimate. There are a wide range of compounds that contribute to wine varietal character and sensory characteristics through specific flavor and aroma profiles, but the impact of physiological and environmental conditions on these compounds during fruit growth is largely unknown. Thus far in the program, our focus has been on how changes to the canopy structure affect cluster light interception and cluster temperature. We're conducting and/or collaborating on several studies to determine the impact of light, temperature, and canopy architecture on specific flavor and aroma compounds in V. vinifera and hybrid cultivars so that viticultural practices can be better targeted towards optimizing fruit composition.
Goal 3: Enhancing economic sustainability of winegrape production Recommending vineyard practices based solely on their impact on fruit and/or wine composition ignores a fundamental goal of most grape and wine producers: profitability. However many growers, particularly in the Northeast, lack a straightforward reference for maximizing returns and setting minimum farm-level prices in light of existing market conditions. My program has worked collaboratively towards establishing a model to enhance the decision-making acuity of growers with respect to grapevine crop load management. Building on this framework we have developed and completed multi-disciplinary projects on the impact of vineyard management practices on the costs of production and consumers' willingness-to-pay for the resulting wines.
Goal 4: Improving environmental sustainability of winegrape production Winegrape production, particularly of V. vinifera, is challenging in Northeastern vineyards where fertile soils can produce vigorous vines and a humid climate can result in high disease pressure. As a result, fungicide usage is high. Our objective is to determine the impact of vineyard management on canopy spray penetration, disease incidence, and leaching of nutrients and agrochemicals in vineyard soils to identify best practices that can reduce the environmental impact of growing V. vinifera in the Northeast. To achieve this objective we have undertaken a series of studies on both canopy/crop load management and vineyard floor management to identify viticultural practices to enhance the environmental sustainability of production operations.

research activities

keywords

Viticulture

geographic focus

domestic geographical region
- Northeastern U.S.

submitted impact statement

Improving the quality of hybrid grapes and wine

VIVO: Cornell Research & Scholarship

Vanden Heuvel, Justine E.

Positions

Websites

Affiliations

member of graduate field

Research

research overview

research activities

principal investigator on

co-principal investigator on

area(s) of concentration/expertise

keywords

geographic focus

domestic geographical region

submitted impact statement

Publications

individual publications

academic article

article

conference paper

document part

report

featured in archived article

Teaching

teaching activities

Service

service to the profession

reviewer or editor for

Background

education and training

awards and honors

Other

college

research keyword