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2022 looking good so far here in North Alabama. The Cab vines pictured here were planted in 2013. The gulf steam plume finally moved a little west. Good luck!

Greetings, Third year in a row specific vines get hit hard with downy mildew. Same vines, no difference in the surroundings, ground is clean, the downy seems to radiate from one area. Other vines of the same variety and more susceptible varieties remain clean. I use copper sparingly and do two...

Rain rain... Weekly thinning.

Hello All, Looking for recommendations for a cordless saw to prune the old spurs. I have a few vines that even loppers are getting difficult to use. I'm thinking maybe a mini-skillsaw type tool? TIA

Hello All, I grow vinifera in the deep south. Trust me it can be done. I would like to delay my harvest via pruning as late as possible when temps are cooler especially delta of day and night temps. I know this can be done because it happened on accident this year. My small vineyard is in the...

Hello Grape Gurus, I'm trying to figure out why the Brix on my red vinifera refuses to get beyond 20 Brix. I was able to get some great hang time this year and still my main Cabernet crop was around 19 Brix. In the same small block I grow Petit Manseng and it hit 23-24 Brix and probably could...

Hello, I'm looking at replacing my bird netting. I have been using the "premium" green string style of netting and its beginning to have holes. Can anyone share their experience with the extruded polypropylene nets versus the string nets? The birds eat through the 3/4 inch holes. I'm wondering...

Hello All, My little block of vinifera is all but defoliated after a week of steamy weather. I knew I had some downy mildew here and there but dammit. I have been cycling - mancozeb earlier, eagle, and sovran every couple of weeks. I guess maybe this is what fungicide resistance looks like. I...

A Petit Syrah vine beginning it's third year. Any ideas what causes this?

Greetings, Anyone here growing Petit Manseng? I've yet to figure out what these vines are trying to accomplish as far as a growth pattern is concerned. I have own rooted and I've grafted on 110R root stock growing in two different blocks which seems to make no difference except in vigor. The...

Hello, I had sour rot at harvest last season and after a bit of investigation I finally realized what the little moths are all about. Has anyone had success controlling gbm using spinosad? I have ample good bugs from black widows to assassin beetles patrolling and I really don't want to disturb...

My Cab Sauv only got to a brix level of 21 this year. The seeds and grapes were mature with a ripe smell and taste. PH was 3.5. We did get more rain and humidity than usual throughout the year. What affects Brix at harvest and is there a way to affect the Brix level for harvest? TIA

Year five on my experiment is done and the wine is cooking. A wet year with much lower than average temps. Harvest came in on the same day as a dry hot year last year. I noticed this year much more sour rot on the tight cluster varieties. Monster Zin clusters had to be tossed. Reisling failed...

I've looked high and low for a used destemmer and it just doesn't exist within reasonable driving distance of my locale. My mother has already told me, "oh hell no" when it comes to picking off grapes again. If I were to buy a new manual model to process less than a ton of grapes could...

I bud grafted this aberration two years ago. I was going to remember which bud I grafted into 110R root stock. Ha! Guess I'll eventually be able to compare and figure it out. I have a good memory but the passage of time...write it down!

Beginning year five. No PD as of yet.

Sometimes it's fun just to show off a little. I think Petite Sirah likes Alabama.

Hello All, I noticed on a Tannat and a Barbera vine late in the season a complete shoot would quickly turn a deep brownish crimson and die pretty much all at once. Any ideas?

Hello, Looking for some been there and done that. I cut a hilltop White Oak four years ago and had it cut into 1/2 inch planks and it has been air drying since. My vines I planted the same time are looking promising this year. I'm planning on oaking and I'm wondering if anyone has actually...

Hello Aficionados, I have been researching pre-harvest fungicides and I haven't really hit upon a comfortable solution for bunch rot/rots. I'm growing several vinifera varieties in a place where, I'm told, they won't grow. I have managed through the typical fungii pressure, PD, birds, hail...