Global climate change has increased the severity and frequency of abiotic stresses, posing significant challenges to the survival and growth of woody plants. Non-structural carbohydrates (NSCs), including starch and sugars, play a vital role in enabling plants to withstand these stresses, helping to stabilize cellular functions by buffering plant energy demands and facilitating recovery on the alleviation of stress. Despite the recognized multiple functions of NSCs, the contrasting effects of multiple abiotic stresses on NSCs dynamics in woody plants remain poorly understood. This review aims to explore the current knowledge of the contrasting effects of abiotic stress conditions including drought, salinity, heat, water logging, and cold on NSCs dynamics. The roles of NSCs in regulating stress-resilience responses in woody plants are also discussed, along with the challenges in NSC measurement, and options for future research directions are explored. This review is based on comprehensive literature research across different search engines like Scopus, Web of Science, and Google Scholar (2000–2024) using targeted keywords. This study compiles the current research on NSCs functions and provides insights into the adaptive strategies of woody plants in response to changing climate conditions, providing groundwork for future research to improve stress tolerance in woody plants.

Climate change is increasing the frequency of droughts, raising the need for sustainable irrigation management in viticulture. This study evaluated the effects of three deficit irrigation regimes—well-watered (WW), mild deficit (MiD), and moderate deficit (MoD)—implemented through the decision support system Vintel^® in a Pinot gris vineyard in Friuli Venezia Giulia (Italy). Vine physiology, grape ripening, and wine aroma profile were assessed across two seasons. The water deficit treatments modulated yield parameters (specifically, cluster weight was reduced by 12% and 10% for Mid and Mod as compared to WW) and delayed sugar accumulation, particularly under MoD (9% Brix reduction as compared to WW). While basic wine composition largely reflected grape maturity, volatile aroma compounds showed variable responses to irrigation and were strongly modulated by seasonal conditions. MiD had a minimal impact on the aroma profile, whereas MoD led to reduced sugar and altered volatile composition, especially under hot and dry conditions. DSS-based mild-deficit irrigation can be adopted to reduce vineyard water consumption without compromising Pinot gris wine quality.

Purpose: Hailstorms are a relevant hazard for viticulture in Europe, with the northern regions of Italy being particularly vulnerable. The unpredictability of hailstorm events limits the possibility of extensive studies; therefore, hail damage on crops remains poorly investigated by the scientific community. Methods: An experiment with four canopy management practices was established in Northeastern Italy, and ahailstorm event occurred on 24/07/2023.Through the LiDAR monitoring of the vineyard using a mobile robotic platform a few hours before the hailstorm event we were able to map the canopy structure and relate it to the berry damage. Results: The vineyard showd an average of 32% of berries damaged per bunch. We found that the basal part of the canopy provided shielding for the grape bunches, resulting in reduced damage. Plants with basal damage also exhibited greater canopy contraction in the basal section, confirming the protective role of the canopy. The results were analyzed with a Bayesian approach to produce robust probabilistic inference. Conclusion: Our study contributes to a better understanding of the dynamics of hail damage in viticulture and can be a valuable tool to better assess the risk of hail damage in vineyards. Highlights: Hailstorm damage on berries and canopy was monitored with LiDAR sensor 12 h before and after the event. The volume and projected area in the basal part of the canopy were associated with lower damage. Grapevines with high canopy contraction after the hail showed less damage.