A Decision Support System (DSS) for Site-Specific Vine Rootstock Choice

Rootstock selection is a key component of sustainable vineyard planning, as it strongly influences vine adaptation to soil and environmental conditions. Despite its importance, this decision is often based on empirical knowledge rather than on structured, site-specific approaches. This study presents SR-Vitis, a decision-support module developed within the Vitis system, designed to support rootstock selection through a rule-based framework integrating pedological, climatic, and agronomic variables. The model translates site-specific characteristics into suitability criteria for a set of widely used European rootstocks. The system was applied to four vineyards located in two contrasting Italian winegrowing regions (Chianti Classico and Alta Murgia) to assess the coherence of the model outputs under different pedoclimatic conditions. The comparison with existing tools and current grower choices showed a general agreement in most cases, while also identifying situations where alternative rootstocks may better match site constraints. These results suggest that SR-Vitis can effectively support a more structured and transparent decision-making process. Although not intended as a predictive validation study, this work provides a first operational assessment of the model and highlights its potential as a practical tool for vineyard planning. By integrating expert knowledge and soil-based criteria into an accessible digital framework, SR-Vitis contributes to bridging the gap between empirical practices and data-supported approaches, supporting viticultural adaptation under increasing environmental variability.