A Very Big Day

Yesterday, we ( I watched) planted root stock in the chardonnay vineyard. The planting process starts with digging a hole at each vine stake (1130 stakes) about 10 x 10 inches at the surface and about 15 inches deep. The root stock is unimpressive!
It's just a brown stick about 18 inches long with a root cluster at the bottom.

My grandson Charlie came over to watch the process. Before long he grabbed a small shovel and tried to help.
Charlie is holding one of the pieces of rootstock in his left hand. Leaning on the grow stake (re bar) is the planted rootstock. Not very impressive at this stage.

The planting process took the crew all day. The final planting step was to put a grow carton, similar to a milk carton, around each newly planted vine. These will act as small green houses and protect the plants from the jack rabbits.

The back slope now looks like a vineyard





During this growing season the root stock will establish itself and grow strong enough for the grafting process. Next spring we will graft the bud wood from a chardonnay vine on to the root stock and we will be three years from a grape harvest. Charlie, who just turned three, will be seven and I will be 66!

Pinot Vineyard Spring Report

Spring has sprung and frost has been a big problem. This has been one of the coldest Springs many old timers can remember. Local papers report some county growers have lost 90% of their crop. I have been very lucky, no apparent frost damage. The pinot vineyard is near the top of the hill. Higher is better, the cold air settles in the valleys and gulches. If you remember from 9th grade science cold air is heavier than warm air.

I have included a few pictures of the vines as they go through bud break ~4/1/2008, as the shoots begin to push 4/6/2008, and the well developed shoots on 4/24/2008. In the final close-up picture (4/24/2008) you can clearly see the little grape bunch clusters.