Soil typologies in the wine-growing areas of Mallorca, with special emphasis on available water content.

• Main Authors: Rossello Joan, Escalona José M., Cifre Josep, Vadell Jaume, Medrano Hipólito
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: EDP Sciences 2018-01-01
• Series: E3S Web of Conferences
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1051/e3sconf/20185001011

Under the conditions of the semi-arid Mediterranean climate, soil depth and water retention capacity are the most important characteristics of the soil related to the quality of the wines. The availability of water will mark the development of the vines and the development and maturity of the grape. The characterization and agronomic evaluation of the soil has been carried out from the excavation of 38 soil pits in the main wine growing areas of Mallorca. Cambisols are the most predominant soil typology followed by Cambisols, Regosols and Luvisols. The water classification of the soils has been made according to the maximum water availability (useful water) in 2 m of soil (mm water / 2 m soil). The proposed levels are: very low (<120 mm), low (120-180 mm), Medium (180-240 mm), High (240-300 mm) and Very high> 300 (mm). The most abundant soil type we find that 47% have high soil water availability, 27% very high, 14% normal and 14% low. Establishing an area based on available water content is a tool that allows us to adjust the selection of the most suitable grape varieties in each soil, thus taking advantage more efficiently of the potential of each type of grape.