#46: The Seasons in the Vineyard
Feb 1, 2025
Since January has come and gone (there is no JOURNEY TO HARVEST article for the January edition) it seemed fitting to present an overview of our growing seasons and how those changes in the vineyard dictate what and when we farmers do what we do here in Sonoma Valley.
JANUARY & FEBRUARY: The winter months are deceptive. Even though it may look like a blight has hit those dormant grapevines, there is a lot of internal activity going on. Each individual vine has shut down in order to store enough energy in preparation for the new crop. Believe it or not, Mother Nature has taught each vine to internally log the number of fall and winter hours and days it must accumulate before it triggers itself to “come alive” to get ready to produce our grapes for wine. Immediately after harvest, the leaves change color from bright green to a dull green, then yellow to brown and then they all drop to the ground, helping add to the compost. As the leaves drop, the delicate green canes will turn brown, lignifying into a much harder wood. Pruning may begin once those canes have lignified, but most farmers will wait. Why? An old adage: “early prune = early bud break”. If the emerging new green tissue is exposed to a spring frost, those fragile buds will freeze and die. At GlenLyon we begin our pruning at the end of February in order to be just finished by bud break. It is possible to prune using machines, but vines that are destined to make world-class wines must be individually done by hand. Depending on the size of the vineyard and due to the shortage of skilled vineyard workers (pruning requires skill!) and timing limitations (best to not prune during rains) pruning may have to begin just after Christmas.
MARCH & APRIL: ‘Tis springtime and the vines will awaken from hibernation. The vineyards will pop with bright green buds emerging from the selective wood remaining after pruning. This is official beginning of the growing season and truly a magical time of rebirth. Once the new tissue emerges, every farmer is on “frost-alert” (there’s even a cell phone app for that!) and if there is danger from possible overnight frost, we will take whatever preventative measures we have at our disposal. (A loud alarm blares in the middle of the night in our bedroom.) This is the time those huge fans on the Valley floor will start up in order to move the air around. We also may overhead sprinklers to begin micro spraying water which freezes to provide an “igloo effect” protecting those buds. Once frost danger is over and the new buds have grown to 1”, our sulphur compound (organic!) spraying program will begin and will continue every 14 days over and over until the grapes turn color (veraison). Our area’s nightly fog brings moisture which can cause mildew issues if we do not religiously spray a mold inhibitor. This is also the time that we mow (or till) the between-the-vine-row cover crops which will help replenish the soil with needed valuable nutrients. We will also begin to fertilize the vines at this time through our drip lines; once just as the new buds emerge, then about ten days after they begin to grow. We use all organic fertilization products, just like you do in your vegetable garden.
MAY through AUGUST: Each of those tiny buds have now developed into long canes, each supporting the baby clusters which will develop into grapes. Most of the vineyards here are “vertically trellised” and when the timing is right those long canes are tucked into wire supports and encouraged to grow toward the sun, spreading the leaves out to optimize photosynthesis. Once the tiny pre-grapes are self-pollinated they begin to grow and form mature clusters. Not all those tiny pre-berries will develop into individual grapes but the success rate we want is about 50%. Too much and the berries simply don’t have the room to develop to their potential; too little and the crop load will be minimal (“shatter”). The developed berries will eventually turn color: in red varieties from green to purple and in white varieties from a dull green to a translucent green. We will also begin leaf pulling and eliminating fruit if the clusters are overlapping. We usually will “drop” about 20-30% of our potential crop. (It breaks my heart to waste a good looking cluster of fruit but our focus is quality, not quantity). Each vine must be balanced according to what that vine will support. We eliminate some leaves so that each remaining leaf will have some sun exposure during the growing day. A lighter canopy also accounts for better air circulation to thwart any mildew issues. During this time when the clusters are fully developed, we can begin to guesstimate our “crop load”. We are also looking for any signs of a possible problem which would indicate a nutrient deficiency, a disease or an insect. Many of us have bluebird, bat and owl boxes strategically placed throughout the vineyard to encourage the population of beneficial critters, marvelous in helping eliminate insects, gophers and mice that can hurt the vines. We also fly our “falcon kites” which keep the small birds away from dining on our fruit. “Turkey alert” is a daily chore as those grape-eating birds can fly over the deer fencing, walk along and chomp clusters of grapes at their leisure.
SEPTEMBER & OCTOBER: We usually begin harvest in September, although these past few years (things are warmer these days) it’s begun in late August. Picking bins need to be sanitized, tractors tuned up and all the winery equipment will have been triple checked and cleaned to make sure everything will be in perfect working order. Once harvest kicks off, there’s not much time for anything unplanned. “Harvest Hell” is when a perfectly good piece of equipment decides it no longer wants to work. (See my past “What Went Wrong During Harvest?” articles….)
NOVEMBER & DECEMBER: Usually all the vines have been harvested by early November and I’ve already been wearing my “winemaker hat”. By the time the holidays hit the new wines are safely in barrels, so I can relax a bit, look back on the year, smile and open a bottle of wine with Suzy to celebrate “getting through another year”.
“May the addition of these vines excite you
And may your yield of fruit be grand
And the Lord look kindly upon GlenLyon
As the best vineyard in the land.
And when you tend the vines
I’ll be watching from above
To make sure you do it properly
Such is the gift of love.”
-Squire Fridell Sr (1916-2000) to commemorate the 1996 planting of our upper vineyard
-Squire Fridell