Serious spring arrived mid May. Finally. After a super warm start in March which led to an early bud break we’ve been scared of frost for a way too long time. In the end it was three nights of burning fires in three vineyards and luckily there are only two vineyards which will likely have a significantly lower yield (Regent and one Müller-Thurgau). Most of the other damaged vines have a backup cane.
Since then we rarely had a day below 20°C and shorts have become the everyday dress. As soon as it’s clear that there won’t be any more frost we immediately start using or removing the backup canes. An annoying piece of work as the shoots start growing like crazy at the same time. Causing a delay for green-pruning before it even started. It’s the most intense time in the vineyards after harvest.
Particularly Silvaner and Schwarzriesling (Pinot Meunier) are a shit load of work with suckers growing out of the soil (often nicely framed by thistles) and waterspouts out of the stem. Which need to be removed.
So I am very happy having an extended crew for a little while.
And finally we also got our cocktail of effective microorganisms on the ground. To do so we tied a little tank at the front of the tractor. With the mulcher at the back (it had to be done but we cut the grass as highly as possible to not kill all insects) the liquid was distributed to the rows fairly well. With the freshly cut green and (depending on the vineyard) malt or guano to eat the microorganism population will hopefully start growing quickly and help improving the soil.
