|
It all starts in the vineyard with quality
fruit!
Fall Bright (actually Pa'tridge
Run Farms) is where great wines begin.
For 36 years Tom Mitchell has been
successfully striving to grow quality grapes
with attention in the vineyard from pruning to
harvest.
As we have 30 varieties of grapes on
our farm, there are varied pruning regimens
and training systems involved.
We have vines on many training systems
including Umbrella Kniffen, Hudson River
Umbrella, 4 arm and 6 arm Kniffen, Geneva
double curtain, High cordon, Low cordon,
Modified Keuka high renewal, Lenz Mosher and
even our own Keuka Delta system.
Vines
differ considerably in growth patterns - some
vertical, some procumbent, some with tendrils
some with none, some with short internodes
others with long internodes, small leaves to
large leaves - you get the picture.
The
purposes of pruning are:
1.
To help establish and maintain the vine
in a form that will save labor and facilitate
vineyard operations;
2.
To distribute the bearing wood
over the vine, between the vines and between
years in accordance with the capacity of
the vine, so as to equalize production
and get large average crops of high
quality fruit; and
3.
To lessen or eliminate
thinning in the control of the crop.
The
purposes of training are to determine shoot
arrangement to the extent that it positions
the bud or base of the shoot
1.
To position leaves for optimum
exposure to light,
2.
To position fruit for ease of
pest control and harvest,
3.
To minimize tying labor, and
(Tying for the uninitiated is a matter of
fastening the vine to the trellis.)
4.
To maximize dormant pruning
efficiency
These
are but two, nonetheless, very important,
vineyard tasks that contribute to quality
fruit for quality wine grape production. |
