What does a prolonged heat wave mean for the vintage?
It could be worse… We are wrapping up a particularly hot July. The last time I had to write about heat stress was 2022, so this year seems to be making up for 2023’s persistent coolness. We all remember 2022. We had a couple hot days in late June that did quite a bit of […]
What it’s like to have real time plant stress
Let’s look at some data. I once saw a commercial that said: “forget everything you thought you knew about slip covers”. So I did. Admittedly I don’t know a lot about slip covers. I do know quite a bit about plant stress. Up until recently, our constant flow of data on soil moisture has been […]
We need to talk…about 2023
No, we aren’t breaking up. This year has been a little weird. We got a lot of rain and up until recently it’s been markedly cold. How different is it though? One thing I like to keep in mind is that the last few years have been hot and early. Perhaps this is just a […]
Investigating Low-Volume Approaches to Vineyard Cooling
Investigating Low-Volume Approaches to Vineyard Cooling High heat can damage both fruit and foliage. A group in Napa is investigating alternatives to overhead impact sprinklers. By Mark Greenspan The following has been reprinted from and article in Wine Business Monthly 2009. Read the original article here. In last month’s column I indicated that a survey […]
Countdown to harvest: How should I be irrigating?
Countdown to harvest: How should I be irrigating? Don’t cut off water just yet… You know it’s harvest season when the winemakers emerge from their cavernous abodes and start making appearances in the vineyard. It’s a magical time, I mean, sometimes they bring donuts! But they also bring with them some funny ideas about irrigation […]
Ask a Viticulturist: Cut from the same shade cloth
Ask a Viticulturist: Cut from the same shade cloth Does color really matter? With the dramatic ups and downs of the climate, shade cloth is rapidly becoming a necessity here in California. I’ve written a bit about shade cloth before, but recently we were asked by a client if colored shade cloth made any difference. […]
Ask a viticulturist: Why is my yield so low? Timely canopy management matters.
Ask a Viticulturist: Why is my yield so low? Timely canopy management matters We were recently contacted by a grower distraught over his consistently low yield. This is a producer in the Russian River AVA of Sonoma County who grows exclusively Pinot noir. Yield-quantity is a funny thing for producers of quality grapes destined for […]
2021 was a good year…to dry farm??
2021 was a good year…to dry farm?? More reasons to consider monitoring your soil moisture Between stunted growth to unexpected nutrient deficiencies, this second consecutive year of drought threw us quite a few curve balls. One thing people aren’t expecting to hear though is that some places haven’t needed to irrigate all season. That’s right. […]
Ask a viticulturist: Unexplained splitting of the trunk
Ask a viticulturist: Unexplained splitting of the trunk Could this be winter injury in California? We recently got a call out to a vineyard in the Russian River AVA of Sonoma county to take a look at something weird: unexplained splitting of the bark on the rootstock portion (O39-16 was the most affected) of young […]
What’s cooking? How early heat stress affects your harvest
What’s cooking? How early heat stress affects your vineyard By Loni Lyttle and Mark Greenspan Heat stress can do a lot of damage, and in many ways the earlier it hits, the worse it’s going to be. Here in Sonoma County, we got hit hard in June with a heat wave. We recorded cluster-zone air […]
