A new integrated approach to assess the impacts of climate change on grapevine fungal diseases : the coupled MILA-STICS model
Résumé
Climate change is expected to influence the development and occurrence of fungal crop diseases. We therefore need to understand and predict the impacts of climate change on crop biotic stresses. A clearer understanding of these impacts requires consideration of how plants respond to climate change, as host plants provide a microclimate and physical and trophic support for disease development. Models have been developed to predict disease pressure on grapevine, but climate change is expected to generate complex responses that require a more integrated view of plant-pathogen interactions. We present here a new, integrated approach using the process-based MILA model coupled with the STICS crop model in order to understand and predict the potential impacts of climate change on downy mildew epidemics affecting grapevine (Plasmopara viticola). We first describe MILA and its calibration to downy mildew. The MILA-STICS combination has then been applied to future climatic data. Analysis of the general trend for future disease pressure, on the one hand, and the effects of the host plant on the course of certain processes, on the other hand, have demonstrated the value of applying MILA to the context of climate change. As a model that attempts to integrate the different mechanisms thatwhich explain involved in disease development, MILA is an appropriate tool to understand and assess the contribution of different effects on disease pressure. Finally, we describe some of the limitations of applying process-based models to the context of climate change. It is necessary to overcome these obstacles to ensure their effective use.