THE VINEYARD

Managing a vineyard entails farsightedness.

Before planting a vineyard, it is necessary to understand the needs of the place and the quality of the grapes that we want to obtain. Only once these conditions are met, can we choose the vines,

the type of rootstock, the vineyard layout, the training system, the tillage and basal dressing, the orientation, the drainage system, the surface water management, etc… Primary tillage is performed the summer before the vines are planted,

to allow the soil to mature and regenerate. Therefore, 4 to 5 years elapse from the decision to plant a new vineyard to the first grape harvest!

It is nice to see how the vineyard changes with the changing of seasons, each one involving specific work to be carried out by the farmer:

In winter,dry pruning and fertilising;

In spring-summer,tying of the shoots to maintain a vertical position, cleaning of trunks, tillage at the foot of the vines, green manuring, mowing, phytosanitary protection, trimming, cutting off of suckers, and selection of grape bunches;

In autumn,at last, harvesting followed by tilling of the soil and sowing of green manure.

The quality of the grapes depends on each one of these operations, as well as on an unavoidable and uncontrollable factor, the seasonal trend.