Wines & Vines

8 Wines&Vines March 2015 A member of Wine Communications Group Inc. President & Publisher Chet Klingensmith chairman Hugh Tietjen Publishing consultant Ken Koppel associate Publisher Tina Vierra Publishing assistant Maria Brunn editOriAL Editor Jim Gordon managing Editor Kate Lavin associate Editor Andrew Adams senior correspondent Paul Franson contributing Editor Jane Firstenfeld northwest correspondent Peter Mitham columnists Grapegrowing: Cliff Ohmart and Glenn T. McGourty contributing Writers Laurie Daniel, Richard Smart, Richard Carey, Chris Stamp, Andrew Reynolds, Craig Root PrActicAL Winery & vineyArd Editor Don Neel Wine eAst Editor Linda Jones McKee design & PrOductiOn art Director Barbara Gelfand Summer Design & Production Bridget Williams dAtAbAse deveLOPment And infOrmAtiOn technOLOgy Vice President—Data management Lynne Skinner Project manager Liesl Stevenson Database & Web Development James Rust, Peter Scarborough eDITOR'S LeTTeR in thE graPEgroWing yEar, March is the month with a clean slate. At least on the West Coast the vines have been pruned, and bud break is about to begin. Growers have counted up the successes and mistakes of the 2014 vintage, made notes about how to improve in 2015, and now it's time to proceed. Hope is in the air, as growers and winemakers imagine how perfectly the season will go. The wet spots will dry up, the straggler vines will finally fill out the trellis, and the end rows won't need hedging. Starting with a clean slate, all is possible. But all is possible only if the grower pays attention, works hard and gets cooperation from the weather. This issue has several articles designed to help growers turn their clean slates into profitable harvests. Perspective on weed control Probably the most important and fundamental contribution in this issue is Glenn McGourty's Grounded Grapegrowing column about creating effective weed control (page 26). As a grape- grower himself and the University of California Coop- erative Extension winegrowing advisor for Lake and Mendocino counties, Glenn knows whereof he speaks. His perspective spans the decades from the head- trained, no-trellis, immaculately disked vineyards of the early 1980s to today's extreme trellises, permanent cover crops and organic methods. He understands the appeal and advantages of both extremes and helps sort out what's important to take from either tradition in terms of weed control for the health of the vines. The cover photo for this issue shows mechanized vine pruners in action. For the Product Focus feature on page 29, associate editor Andrew Adams researched vine trimmers to help growers who may be shopping for more mechanical help during the coming season. Hedging also is the subject of another article in this issue. It's a particular challenge for grow- ers in eastern North America who can't control the natural irrigation they may get from the clouds all summer and fall. Overly vigorous vines can be controlled by trimming off the upward- growing shoots when they pass the top wire, but there may be a better way. On page 61, Dr. Justine Vanden Heuvel from Cornell University reports on early stage research into an alternative to hedging. It's as simple as twisting the upward-growing shoots around the top wire rather than cutting them off. renew the Pierce's disease assessment Another topic in this issue is an extremely important one for growers in California, specifically. It is time again for a statewide vote to renew the self-assessment on grape tonnage that supports the California Department of Food and Agriculture's Pierce's Disease/Glassy-winged Sharpshooter Board. The research, monitoring and control efforts launched and maintained via the assess- ment have been extremely successful. An article on page 45 in the Practical Winery & Vineyard section takes a close look at all that the Pierce's disease assessment has accomplished and the extent of work that remains to be done. We urge you to read the article, understand the situation and vote for the renewal of this assessment. Here's to a clean slate and a great growing season ahead! —Jim Gordon A Clean Slate in the Vineyard Hope is in the air. The wet spots will dry up, the straggler vines will finally fill out the trellis, and the end rows won't need hedging. cOntAct us subscriPtions email: subs@winesandvines.com Online: winesandvines.com/subscribe Phone: (866) 453-9701 EDitorial email: edit@winesandvines.com mail 65 Mitchell Blvd., Suite A San Rafael, CA 94903 cOnnect With us facebook.com/WinesandVines twitter.com/WinesandVines youtube.com/WinesandVines1919

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