Week 10 (Aug. 19 - 23rd)

These are Frontenac Noir and Frontenac Gris vines side-by-side. Frontenac, just like Pinot, is prone to yielding bud mutations every now and then. This means that maybe one out of every million buds will have a mutation in one, or multiple, genes which control color. These buds form into shoots normally, however they produce fruit that is distinguishable from the rest of the shoots on the vine. If noticed, a cutting can be taken of the mutant and propagated vegetatively. In some cases Frontenac has been known to mutate from Noir to Gris, as well as Blanc, and then even back to Noir. This last part is exciting since the bud that mutates back may have fruit with unique chemistry from the original.

This unusual leaf pattern is caused by the application of 2,4-D (a common broad-leaf herbicide) to lawns, golfcourses and soybean/corn fields. The volatile chemical drifts into the vineyard and very low concentrations, however it is still potent enough to disrupt the formation of the vascular system in new growth. Therefore, you can track when the herbicide was applied based on which leaves along the shoot are affected. We say the mutated leaves look "fish tail-y" 

In each block of our vineyards we have also installed "Bird Gard", or as I prefer to call them squawks boxes, in order to further deter birds from entering. Every 15 min they emit bird distress calls from five or six different birds. There is debate on whether or not they are effective, but at least the neighbors can enjoy the squawks all day long!

Many table (or eating) grape varieties are hitting veraison at this point in time...

... due to this fact, we have installed an electric fence around he table grape block to keep out the raccoons. We have also set up six live traps, which we bait with tuna, in order to trap them if they're around.

I found this downy mildew-covered tendril and couldn't resist taking an artsy photo. The spores of downy mildew (and  other fungi) are retained in old tendrils and rachis that overwinter on the plants and cling to the trellises. Therefore, if one is to grow grapes organically, particularly without using fungicides, then they must make sure to remove all left-over scraps in order to prevent future fungal outbreaks.