| 23 T T Rosa Watson Climate resilience lab’s key driver The partnership between NMIT and BSI enables students to learn advanced systems and be involved in research projects. Marlborough Research Centre REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT A new experimental research vineyard in Marlborough is already having an impact just two years after opening. Te Whenua Tupu - The Living Lab, based in Blenheim, cost approximately $3.5 million to develop and received support from the Government’s Provincial Growth Fund. The state-of-the-art horticultural research facility was developed by the Marlborough Research Centre Trust in partnership with the Bioeconomy Science Institute (BSI) and Nelson Marlborough Institute of Technology (NMIT). Officially opened in July 2024, the facility was designed to help New Zealand’s grape, wine and horticultural sectors adapt to climate change and develop more productive, sustainable growing systems. The 965sqm facility includes a 265sqm teaching and operation area and a 700sqm covered growing area owned by the Marlborough Research Centre, operated by the Bioeconomy Science Institute (BSI), and supported by NMIT. In the growing area, 48 vines are housed in a Cravo plastic house and planted in large lysimeters that can grow vines at a commercially relevant scale. This allows scientists to take a whole- systems approach to researching horticulture production that will provide solutions to growers for enhancing sustainability and profitability. Rather than conducting experiments in commercial vineyards, where weather and soil conditions vary naturally, the controlled environment allows researchers to precisely control and measure almost every aspect of a plant’s growing environment. Bioeconomy Science Institute, science group leader, Dr Damian Martin, says research will start in the upcoming growing season, but the facility has already been an impactful communication tool, particularly with local and central government. The partnership between NMIT and BSI enables students to learn advanced systems and be involved in research projects, which significantly improves the application of learning in the transition to employment within the industry. Also starting in the upcoming growing season are NMIT student research projects. Students studying viticulture and horticulture through NMIT have direct access to the facility, allowing them to learn within an active research environment. MRC also hosts industry workshops and grower training programmes, creating a direct link between scientific research, commercial growers, industry organisations, students and future professionals. “Looking after the health and biodiversity of soils and the wider landscape/ecosystem can come with economic costs to growers,” Damian says. “Our research will develop growing methods that maximise environmental benefit without economic trade-off. It will look after the longterm health and productivity of the region’s horticultural and agricultural land.” Climate resilience is a main driver behind the Living Lab, where researchers can manipulate water availability, irrigation strategies, soil conditions, nutrient levels, temperature, light exposure and growing practices. This enables scientists to simulate future climate scenarios and identify how grapevines and other horticultural crops may respond. They include drought, increased temperatures, changing rainfall patterns, new pest and disease pressures, and more frequent extreme weather events. This knowledge is strategically important for Marlborough’ s wine industry, which produces the majority of New Zealand’s wine exports. Beyond wine, the Marlborough Research Centre supports innovation across forestry, horticulture, food processing, agritech, environmental management, and bio-based products. • Structural Engineering • Architectural Design • Civil Engineering • Industrial and Commercial Building Design Specialists www.engenium.co.nz | +64 3 366 0434 Proud to support Marlborough Research Centre www.geosolutions.nz Specialised geotechnical consultancy Proud to support Marlborough Research Centre Behind every innovative facility lies a complex engineering story. We were proud to have helped solve the geotechnical challenges that made The Living Lab possible.
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