http://rappahannockcellars.com/blogs/vineyard-view/drought-hits-the-east-toms-vineyard-update-july-22 Revolutionizing Virginia Wine Tue, 31 Jan 2012 05:53:36 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://rappahannockcellars.com/blogs/vineyard-view/drought-hits-the-east-toms-vineyard-update-july-22/comment-page-1#comment-24 Tom Mon, 26 Jul 2010 17:13:50 +0000 http://rappahannockcellars.com/?p=969#comment-24 Frank, Thanks so much for your interests and question. As for the first part of your question, removal of the cover crop should be done at the first sign of water stress, unless there is a high probability of rain in the immediate forecast. Vines under stress will exhibit several early symptoms including cessation of shoot tip growth, yellowing and eventual loss of older basil leaves around the fruit zone and upward cupping of younger leaves. Tillage would be the preferred method of removing the cover in a sustainable vineyard; unfortunately, we do not possess any equipment to perform in-row cultivation so we had no choice but to use herbicide. I am confident though, given the amount of work we do to build healthy, living soils that the negative impacts of a single herbicide application will be minimal. An ancillary benefit to removing the existing cover is that I will now have the opportunity it replace it with more specific species of plants. Rather than allowing native broad leaf "weeds" and tall growing pasture grass to repopulate this area, I will sow in a low growing grass and clover blend that will provide several benefits: First, I can customize the grass species to the characteristics of each variety. For example, Seyval Blanc, which has relatively low vigor, will receive a species that is less competitive while the more vigorous Cabernet Franc will get one that is more competitive. Also, a low growing grass will not need to be mowed down throughout the growing season there by reducing the amount of tractor passes through the vineyard, which in turn will reduce the potential for soil compaction, reduce consumption of fossil fuels and reduce labor costs. Second, the addition of clover, which fixes atmospheric nitrogen into the soil, will help to reduce the need for supplemental nitrogen applications. All of which, I feel, will improve the health of the vineyard and the environment. Tom Frank,
Thanks so much for your interests and question. As for the first part of your question, removal of the cover crop should be done at the first sign of water stress, unless there is a high probability of rain in the immediate forecast. Vines under stress will exhibit several early symptoms including cessation of shoot tip growth, yellowing and eventual loss of older basil leaves around the fruit zone and upward cupping of younger leaves.
Tillage would be the preferred method of removing the cover in a sustainable vineyard; unfortunately, we do not possess any equipment to perform in-row cultivation so we had no choice but to use herbicide. I am confident though, given the amount of work we do to build healthy, living soils that the negative impacts of a single herbicide application will be minimal.
An ancillary benefit to removing the existing cover is that I will now have the opportunity it replace it with more specific species of plants. Rather than allowing native broad leaf “weeds” and tall growing pasture grass to repopulate this area, I will sow in a low growing grass and clover blend that will provide several benefits: First, I can customize the grass species to the characteristics of each variety. For example, Seyval Blanc, which has relatively low vigor, will receive a species that is less competitive while the more vigorous Cabernet Franc will get one that is more competitive. Also, a low growing grass will not need to be mowed down throughout the growing season there by reducing the amount of tractor passes through the vineyard, which in turn will reduce the potential for soil compaction, reduce consumption of fossil fuels and reduce labor costs. Second, the addition of clover, which fixes atmospheric nitrogen into the soil, will help to reduce the need for supplemental nitrogen applications. All of which, I feel, will improve the health of the vineyard and the environment.
Tom

]]> http://rappahannockcellars.com/blogs/vineyard-view/drought-hits-the-east-toms-vineyard-update-july-22/comment-page-1#comment-21 Frank Morgan Thu, 22 Jul 2010 19:15:28 +0000 http://rappahannockcellars.com/?p=969#comment-21 Tom - Thanks for such an informative post! In talking with a few other wine makers, they too seemed concerned with the higher than usual temperatures coupled with the lack of rain. At what point do you make the decision to eliminate the cover crop in the rows, and more importantly, how do you go about removing the cover crop (via spray, or tilling?). Tom – Thanks for such an informative post! In talking with a few other wine makers, they too seemed concerned with the higher than usual temperatures coupled with the lack of rain. At what point do you make the decision to eliminate the cover crop in the rows, and more importantly, how do you go about removing the cover crop (via spray, or tilling?).

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