A question on vine maintenance

Today I stopped by Barboursville in Virginia to pick up a few bottles for my collection (Octagon, Cab Franc, Viognier). As I was leaving, I was studying the grape vines and noticed that they were cut back to the "base" (image a long series of clean looking "T"s) - in other words, there were no "suckers" growing from the "T". I then drove less than 1 miles away to Horton to pick up one bottle of Viognier (I'm doing a taste off between the two to see how wineries less than 1 mile apart create Viognier). There I noticed that there were "suckers" growing off the top part of the "T"s. They were a straw color and presumably not cut back over the winter.

So, the question is: is it "proper" to cut these back at the end of the growing season or does it matter at all? And I presume Horton would eventually cut them back before growing season starts - or would they?

Thanks,

David

Although I am not familiar with Eastern vineyard practices, it is normal to prune while vines are dormant. So, any time before buds are pushing is fine. There are various ideas about the best time to prune, but those are more strategic.

If I remember correctly Barboursville has wind machines for frost protection and Horton has no means of frost protection. Late pruning is believed to delay bud burst which is beneficial for avoiding early spring frost damage. My guess is that Dennis is just waiting to prune. I am only guessing based upon when I see bud burst in Southern Maryland but there is probably 3 weeks remaining until bud burst in Orange. I have had pruning discussions with folks and some have talked of waiting until the ends of last years growth pushes before pruning back to the buds for this year so as to push back bud burst as much as possible.

Sounds right. We are in far north CA. We often prune long and late. Then, once the risk of frost has passed, we do a final prune on the spurs.

If I remember correctly Barboursville has wind machines for frost protection and Horton has no means of frost protection. Late pruning is believed to delay bud burst which is beneficial for avoiding early spring frost damage. My guess is that Dennis is just waiting to prune. I am only guessing based upon when I see bud burst in Southern Maryland but there is probably 3 weeks remaining until bud burst in Orange. I have had pruning discussions with folks and some have talked of waiting until the ends of last years growth pushes before pruning back to the buds for this year so as to push back bud burst as much as possible.

If there are distinctive Ts in the vineyards I would infer that the vine are cordon spur pruned. With this system, the bulk of last seasons growth is often removed mechanically, and at a later stage the spurs for the next seasons growth are manually selected. It just sounds like they have not yet sent the tractors round one of the vineyards. Providing there is no growth before the pruning is completed it is not a problem.

Note that I have read a 200 page book on viticulture, and thus am an expert in these matters

[James Roscoe]

Today I stopped by Barboursville in Virginia to pick up a few bottles for my collection (Octagon, Cab Franc, Viognier). As I was leaving, I was studying the grape vines and noticed that they were cut back to the "base" (image a long series of clean looking "T"s) - in other words, there were no "suckers" growing from the "T". I then drove less than 1 miles away to Horton to pick up one bottle of Viognier (I'm doing a taste off between the two to see how wineries less than 1 mile apart create Viognier). There I noticed that there were "suckers" growing off the top part of the "T"s. They were a straw color and presumably not cut back over the winter.

So, the question is: is it "proper" to cut these back at the end of the growing season or does it matter at all? And I presume Horton would eventually cut them back before growing season starts - or would they?

Thanks,

David

Are you writing another article for the Post?

Are you writing another article for the Post?

Research for my book ...

I recall visiting Horton a few years ago. The vineyard beside the access road was planted to Rkatsitelli (sp), as I recall, and trained to a high, bilateral cordon. The tops of the fruiting canes (David's "suckers," I presume) were 10 feet up, maybe more. They were beautifully maintained, but looked like they would be very labor intensive, as in "on a ladder."