Snowden News
Pruning Photo Finish
Yesterday was a big day at the ranch – ranch manager Severiano Deloera and his team of master vineyardists finished pruning the Brothers’ vineyard. The Brothers is our largest and most challenging block because it’s closely spaced and “cane pruned” – a more sophisticated and difficult pruning method. One silver lining of this dry winter has been fewer rain days – Seve’s small team is on track to finish the pruning without needing to call in reinforcements, ensuring a high level of accuracy and uniformity in the work. They’ve only got two single-acre blocks to go: the Cabernet Franc and the Sauvignon Blanc. Seve always leaves the Sauvignon Blanc for last – it’s planted in the only spot on the ranch susceptible to frost and late pruning will delay budbreak, protecting the vines farther into the frost season. It looks like we'll finish pruning without a day to spare -- the first buds are just starting to crack in the earliest blocks. More good news – it’s just started raining!
Mar 13, 2018 at 8:09 PM
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Gopher Control in 2018
We’re often amazed at the idiosyncrasies of holistic farming. When you eliminate plowing, it strengthens the ecosystem of the vineyard because the natural microbes and insects that grow above and below ground come into balance and the soil becomes a healthier place for grapes to grow. But this means it’s also a healthier place for gophers to grow, and gophers like to eat the roots of grapevines, especially young and tender grapevines. There are a lot of things people do to address gophers, ranging from traps, to explosives to poisons – none of which feel like they promote a healthy, natural field. Fortunately, farming as non-invasively as possible gives nature room to strike a balance in gophers, just as it does for microbes – in this case, leading two healthy, young coyotes to take up residence in the woods by the Brothers Vineyard. The photo is of one of them having some lunch in the vineyard on a recent sunny afternoon.
Feb 11, 2018 at 2:50 PM
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