Roses in the vineyards

Planting roses at the beginning of the vineyard rows has been a technique used since ancient times, but why?

These beautiful plants are used for their sentinel function. Since it is a more delicate plant than the vine, it is in fact able to "warn" the presence of certain diseases or parasites first, thus allowing the farmer to protect his vineyards. Precisely because of this function it is also called a "spy" plant and is often planted at the head of the rows.

The roses planted in the vineyard are an excellent combination, which allows those who take care of the rows to intervene only when actually necessary. Thus minimizing the use of plant protection products. Among the "predictable" diseases thanks to the rose are the attack of botrytis, the infamous powdery mildew, woolly root rot, bacterial cancer, attacks by red and yellow spider mites.

Nowadays, the planting of roses in the vineyards is no longer strictly necessary for their "sentinel" use. This is thanks to the development of new agricultural and vine-growing techniques and to new highly reliable forecasting scientific instruments.

However, the combination of rose and vineyard remains an ancient technique that is still widespread among farmers; both for an undoubtedly impactful aesthetic factor especially in the flowering period, and to safeguard the biological cycles of the plant without intervening unnecessarily, as well as for a respect for past traditions.