What is the FROST project?
Spring frost is a significant threat to UK vineyards from mid-March to May, when freezing temperatures can damage cells in buds and young shoots, risking productivity of the perennial vines during both the current and following growing seasons.
The degree of damage from frost depends on:
- the phenological stage of the vine,
- severity (critical temperature),
- the length of frost event(s),
- the type of frost (radiation or advection)
- the effectiveness of any mitigation measures put in place
To fully support growers, the FROST project has created site-optimised, variety-specific frost risk and frost type forecasts on a co-designed web-app platform, enabling vineyard managers to make more informed, targeted and sustainable choices when responding to frost events.
These forecasts reduce the threat of yield loss and help vineyards to focus on particular risk areas and their mitigation strategies based on the conditions. The frost type forecasts provide a clearer indication of when mitigation efforts are likely to be most effective.
To deliver granular, site and variety specific frost risk forecasts, the research team distributed a Bud Burst Hub webapp to UK vineyards to record the timing and geographic spread of budburst that fed into a Bud Burst Model.
A better understanding of budburst can help growers identify when their vines will be most vulnerable to frost damage and take preventative action to protect their crop (such as using bougies, frost fans or sprinklers).
Integrating the budburst data captured into the frost forecast webapp has resulted in a robust frost forecasting tool, helping to protect vineyards during the critical frost season.
Please visit the Vinescapes website for more information.
Project partners
This innovative project funded by Innovate UK and the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) through the ‘Farming Futures: Environmental resilience, Feasibility’ call. The project ends in December 2025.
WeatherQuest
WeatherQuest is a weather forecasting and analytics SME which provides weather and climate services in the agriculture, renewable energy, water, transport and media sectors. They have developed the tailored, site-specific frost forecasts, integrating real-time vineyard measurements and site topographic information through machine learning.
Plumpton College
Plumpton College is the UK’s centre for excellence in Wine Education, Training and Research. They have managed data collection at the College’s Rock Lodge 8ha Vineyard, while also providing expertise on frost damage within grapevines.
Vinescapes
Vinescapes is a UK-based vineyard and winery consultancy providing end-to-end support for the wine sector. Vinescapes services range from site assessment and vineyard establishment to viticulture management, winery design, business planning, and training. With expertise in climate science and regenerative practices, Vinescapes helps growers and producers optimise production, reduce risk and build sustainable, resilient wine businesses.
Vinewatch
Provides IoT-based monitoring services to viticulturalists, including frost, vine and weather factors. Vinewatch have managed networking and sensor connectivity to ensure consistent data flow and support post-project exploitation.
Wines of Great Britain (WineGB)
WineGB is the trade association for UK wine. We cultivate success for our 500 grower and producer members which represents circa 70% of UK hectarage. We represent the industry to the Government, media, and trade. They provide their members with timely, accurate resources to help their businesses grow, from guidance and toolkits, to training and marketing access. At the heart of their work, they help members to make wine, market wine and tell the story. WineGB will support research dissemination through its comprehensive network.
