Sustainable Winegrowing With Vineyard Team

The introductory voice and producer of this podcast, Beth Vukmanic, joined Jaime Lewis of CONSUMED in the much-awaited season nine. The CONSUMED podcast stokes candid conversation about life and flavor, ten episodes at a time. Jaime interviews eaters, drinkers, thinkers and makers across California and especially at its heart, the Central Coast. And, this past year, CONSUMED hit the top 40 podcasts about food and wine in the United States. Enjoy this rebroadcast. An Introduction from the CONSUMED podcast: When Beth Vukmanic came on the podcast, I was certain we'd talk only about her work with the Vineyard Team, an organization based in Atascadero, California that promotes sustainable winegrowing throughout the U.S. But Beth surprised me with all her many special fun facts: she was born in a moving VW Rabbit on a freeway in Detroit, she plays the harp professionally, and — here’s the biggie — she is a fitness superstar. No really. Beth is a hugely popular Instagram fitness instructor with a following like you

There is no doubt that water is a precious resource, particularly in drought prone regions like California. It is very important for growers to measure soil moisture and there are a bevy of technological devices available to utilize. From soil moisture probes to pressure bombs, these tools are helpful but, they only provide data on once specific area at a time and many are time consuming to use. Today, there is a lot of free satellite data available and that data is being captured by Irriwatch. Founder and CEO Wim Bastiaanssen is an international academic leader and is engaged as a Visiting Professor at Delft University of Technology (TU Delft). He holds a Ph.D. degree in crop-soil-atmospheric physics from Wageningen University. Having grown up on a potato farm, Wim aims to provide practical guidelines for irrigation management. The IrriWatch software aggregates data from 10 satellites to provide daily moisture measurements down to the pixel, allowing growers to optimize irrigation water applications in a wor

Using sheep to graze vineyards has many benefits including lowering the carbon footprint, fewer tractor passes, and reduced herbicide use. Kelsey Brewer, Ph.D. Candidate at the University of California at Davis has been researching how these living lawnmowers impact nutrient and energy flows in the eco system. When tractors were replaced by sheep, the research team found that vineyards had 1.3 times more organic matter and nitrogen plus twice as much available soil nitrogen in the soil. Grazed vineyards have very high microbial activity, improved infiltration, and porosity. Of course, sheep are not a good fit for every vineyard system. Their benefits are not seen in ranches where heavy tillage is still used. While a manager could establish their own flock, most grazing is contracted with experienced professionals who can intensively and efficiently graze in vineyard. References: 30: Managing the Landscape Around the Vineyard (Podcast) 106: What? Bury Charcoal in the Vineyard? (Podcast) Conservation Plan Te

What, bury charcoal in the vineyard? Biochar is a specialized form of charcoal made from waste woody biomass at high temperature in the absence of oxygen. We know soil organic matter is important for the health of any crop. It turns out the use of charwood (biochar) goes back to ancient civilizations and it can be found naturally in soils from fire events. Doug Beck, Science Officer at Monterey Pacific in Monterey California, recently conducted a four-year trial to test the impacts of biochar and compost as soil amendments on wine grape growth, water use, yield, and water quality. This is an excerpt from his presentation at the Sustainable Ag Expo in November 2020. This fascinating trial showed that the addition of biochar and compost to the soil improves nutrient efficiency, improves water holding capacity, and positively impacted yields. References: 56: Conservation Burning and Biochar (Podcast) “Biochar increases vineyard productivity without affecting grape quality: Results from a four years field exper

Higher education is important to many students but paying for college can be challenging. The Vineyard Team Educational Scholarship helps college students whose parents work in members' vineyards and wineries achieve their dreams. The Smiths of Saxum and James Berry Vineyard, know that our people are vital to sustainability. Justin Smith tells the story of Juan Nevarez, a person instrumental in their wine business for over three decades, and their inspiration to donate to the scholarship fund in his name. Pebble Smith says, “The year is 1985 and we’re looking at our first harvest at James Berry Vineyard. Our family, alone, has deer fenced, laid out, staked, and planted 35 acres of Chardonnay and Pinot Blanc. We know there is no way we can get the grapes off and to the winery just using our family and any friends still willing to help us. Our very first thought was to call our friend Juan who was then helping the Baldwins develop their vineyard and winery. He looked at us pleading for help and said ‘no problem

In 2008 the oversupply of Sauvignon Blanc coupled with the financial crisis lead to trialing shaking to remove berries in New Zealand for the very first time. A few years later, the New Zealand Winegrowers Society funded a three-year grant to test the impacts of shaking on dropping fruit, wine quality, and botrytis. Mark Allen of Allen Vineyard Advisory explains that because shaking the vine four to six weeks after fruit set does cause some damage to the canopy and berries, pathologists assumed that the shaken vines would have a higher incidence of botrytis. They were surprised that they did not. In fact, the botrytis levels were markedly less in the shaken vines than the control. Trials have found that shaking reduces botrytis at harvest by at least 50 percent plus the cost is significantly less than dropping fruit. With increased resistance to chemical controls, good wine quality, and cost efficiency, shaking shows a lot of promise. References: 1: Bunch Rot with Larry Bettiga (podcast) Bunch Rot Disease Ma

The 2020 pandemic showed many brands how social media can be an important means of communication. Heather Daenitz of Craft & Cluster helps wines brands tell their grape to glass story with photography and social media. Keeping up with latest trends and algorithms can be challenging. At the end of the day, Instagram wants to keep people on the platform as long as possible. If you have good content the algorithm will show your posts to more people, benefiting both your brand awareness and Instagram. A few years ago, a common tactic was to post multiple times a day. Today, it is more important to post less frequently with more intention. Social media is a great way to share a brands values and to diversify both marketing channels. References: 4/22/21 Social Media & Sustainability Online Workshop 85: It‘s Time for New Wine Sales Strategies 83: Sustainability: An Advantage in any Market 82: Getting to Know Your Wine Customer Coastal Tractor Craft & Cluster Craft & Cluster Instagram SIP Certifie

The small Priorat region in Spain has a fascinating history dating back to the Moors in the 8th century, to the birth of its wine production for a local monastery in the 1100s to the near complete devastation of its vineyards by phylloxera in the late 19th century. Replanting began in earnest in the 1950s and top reviews by Robert Parker in the 2000 helped solidify this area as a top wine region in Spain. Local Perinet Winemaker Antoni Sanchez-Ortiz notes how years of abandonment has lead nature reestablish its place among the vines, hazelnut, olives, and forest. To maintain this balance of nature and winemaking, the winery has established an ESG (Environmental, Social, Governance) initiative. The lack of electricity means that current production relies on generators. Perinet’s Environmental project is to convert the property to 100 percent solar power. Socially, they provide a workplace that takes responsibility for their footprint, an organization their staff can feel proud to work for. They take Governance

The resource concentration hypothesis looks at how the advent of modern agriculture as monoculture created an environment where pests can grow faster because their resource, the crop, is more prevalent. Biodiversity is fundamental for pest management and Daniel Paredes, Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of California Davis, in the department of Wildlife Fish and Conservation Biology, is studying how sustaining natural habitat around vineyards can increase biodiversity. Promotion of natural habitat impacts vineyards in two different ways; 1) the promotion of natural enemies and 2) by diminishing the pest population. Speaking about his latest research project in Spain, Daniel says, “At harvest, we found pest outbreaks increased four-fold in simplified, vineyard-dominated landscapes compared to complex landscapes in which vineyards are surrounded by semi-natural habitats.” This study shows that conserving and restoring natural vegetation creates a more stable environment. References: Ceres Imaging Diverging

While grape production does not require extensive water use and the majority of vineyards in the Pacific North West are drip irrigated, drought conditions in recent years have led growers to seek more efficiencies to reduce water use. Pete Jacoby, Professor of Crops and Soil Sciences at Washington State University knows that in a traditional drip irrigated vineyard, water is lost through evaporation plus plants loose about 90 percent of the water they take up through transportation. Most sub-surface micro-irrigation is done with buried lines which are easily clogged in fine silty loam soils or damaged by rodents. So, he is partnering with commercial grower sto test a different sub-surface irrigation system - vertically placed PVC pipe. By placing pipes at one, two, three, and four feet, the experiment tested water reduction from 60 percent all the way down to 15 percent of what was typically delivered through above ground irrigation. Researchers discovered that this changed the vine root architecture from 18

Once a vineyard manger has found disease there is often not much to be done, they are merely mitigating loss. The Lab at Cornell has launched several grape disease sensing technology projects to study early detection and how to use that information. Leading the research is Katie Gold, assistant professor of plant pathology and plant microbe-biology at Cornell AgriTech. The programs utilize imaging spectroscopy (also known as hyperspectral imaging) deployed at all scales, from autonomous rovers to spacecraft with the goal to detect disease earlier when management is going to be both minimal and successful. The latest research includes partnering with NASA to look at how dust currents can move pathogens across the globe to building autonomous robots to detect downy mildew, powdery mildew, and to aide pruning decisions. References: 18: Next Steps in Grape Sampling (Podcast) Cornell AgriTech Grant to support research into grape downy mildew Katie Gold SIP Certified Scientists track plant diseases riding acros

Wildfires and COVID impacted legislation as much as they impacted wine production this year. Lauren Noland-Hajik, Attorney and Lobbyist at Soares & Conway coves some of the major changes seen in 2020 and what is coming up in 2021. The March shutdown of the legislature due to COVID resulted in the handing off of power from the legislature off to governor to make executive orders. This is a scenario that has not been seen in a long time and was still in place as of the end of 2020. With the extended tax deadline, the legislature passed baby budget and filled in details in August. As a result, many programs were gutted. New programs and one time funds were taken off the table including programs like upgrading diesel engines, healthy soils program, and air quality plans that help agriculture. Lauren covers new and upcoming policies including how ag can be a solution for wildfires; a bill to create consistent training for M95 mask use; AB685 defining a COVID outbreak and the notification procedure; SB1159 defi

In 1972 Paul Kalemkiarian’s father purchased a liquor store and began featuring two of his top wine picks each month. Customers, appreciative of the direction in wine selection, would ask to have wine shipped to them and the Wine of the Month Club was born. The intent of the club remains the same, to help customers select a good wine for the value, not to sell any wine. After sampling over 100,000 wines, Paul knows you need to taste a wine to know if it is good. Having a sustainable business means being able to go to market through different routes so consumers can buy at varying price points. Paul reflects on shipping challenges from reporting to taxes; misconceptions about the quality of wine coming from the bulk market; and the slow road to pivot from on premise sales to online post COVID. As Paul says, “Wine is an ethereal fruit, expressive of where it is grown unlike any other fruit,” and the industry can help consumers experience wine in a new way. References: 82: Getting to Know Your Wine Customer | B

In mid-April 2020, the grape market saw its highest bulk inventory at 23 million gallons. By November that quantity had reduced significantly to 8.5 million gallons. Audra Cooper, Central Coast Grape Broker and Partner at Turrentine Brokerage explains how the grape market has been on a roller coaster throughout 2020. At the beginning of the year, most varieties and regions in California were in drastic oversupply. The onset of COVID lead to pantry loading as people increased wine consumption at home. Summer fires reduced fruit supply, skyrocketed bulk wine sales, and leave a lot of questions around what the quality of the 2020 vintage will be. Although many wine brands learned proactive techniques to manage smoke taint over the past few years, the industry still lacks standardization in regards to smoke taint testing. References: 73: Smoke Impact on Wine (Podcast) 65: Winegrape Brokering and Todays Grape Market (Podcast) Audra Cooper SIP Certified Smoke Impact in Grapes and Wine | ETS Laboratories Smoke Tain

The Spotted Lanternfly (SLF) is the newest agricultural invasive species in the United States. Originally from Asia, this insect feeds on plant sap from a broad range of hosts. Dr. Heather Leach, Extension Associate at the Department of Entomology at Penn State University is focused on researching this insect and educating the public on how to manage the pest. Although it appears that SLF has been in the United States for some years, growers are now seeing adverse effects and report extreme vine decline and death. A major part of Heather’s research is around how to manage SLF. While a large number of insecticides are effective, the challenge is that population’s levels are highest during harvest. This restricts the insecticide use to products with low residuals and requires more applications. Alternative management trials with some promise include exclusion netting, cannon sprayers, building a border with insecticide treated netting, and determining if there are predators already in the United States.   Refer

Today, 40% of the California wine industry does not have a Farm Advisor. Four industry veterans discuss retirements and recruitment for UC Cooperative Extension. Larry Bettiga, long time UCCE Farm Advisor Monterey County, discusses how reduction in staff looks from the perspective of a Farm Advisor. Chris Storm, Viticulturist of Vino Farms covers his experience with Farm Advisors and their import to the industry to assist smaller growers and facilitate research. Dr. Wendy Powers, Associate Vice President, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources, and Cliff Ohmart facilitate a brainstorming session on how the industry can fill this void through PCAs, consultants and organizations like the Vineyard Team and Lodi Winegrowers. This discussion is an excerpt from the 2020 virtual Sustainable Ag Expo course on Current Status of UC Cooperative Extension - Retirements and Recruitment. Use the link below to register for the course and hear the full discussion between November 9 and December 4, 2020. References: 52: The L

Leading expert Dr. Andrew Landers of Cornell University discusses his more than thirty years of research and development on pesticide sprayer technology to reduce pesticide use through accurate, efficient delivery of the product to the plant. References: 2015 Precision Agriculture Workshop (Video) Andrew Landers Webpage Effective Vineyard Spraying | Andrew Landers Effective Vineyard Spraying Online Educational Module (DPR CE credit available) Pesticide Application Technology at Cornell Sustainable Ag Expo SIP Certified Waste Not, Want Not!: Recent advances in technology for the precise spraying of pesticides (Video) Get More Subscribe on Google Play, iHeartRADIO, iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, TuneIn, or wherever you listen so you never miss an episode on the latest science and research with the Sustainable Winegrowing Podcast. Since 1994, Vineyard Team has been your resource for workshops and field demonstrations, research, and events dedicated to the stewardship of our natural resources. Learn more at www.v

A recent study examined the potential of hemp terpene drift from hemp crops planted in close proximity to vineyards in Sonoma County, California. George Sellu, Program Coordinator and Instructor in the Agribusiness department at Santa Rosa Junior College explains the nuances of hemp production from how volatile aroma profiles vary by variety, the lack of studies to show volatiles impact grapes, wind influence on volatile organic compound movement, and smoke taint. George Sellu joined the SRJC in Fall 2013. He received a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture and Environmental Science with an emphasis in Soil Science from the University of Sierra Leone and a MS and PhD in Agricultural Science/Education from the University of California, Davis. References: George Sellu | gsellu@santarosa.edu Growing Cannabis in Wine Country: The Shone Farm Project Hemp Being Explored as a New Farm Crop in Sonoma County Sustainable Ag Expo SIP Certified Get More Subscribe on Google Play, iHeartRADIO, iTunes, Spotify, Stitcher, T

David R. Montgomery defines regenerative agriculture as leaving the land better off and more fertile as a consequence of cultivation. David studied geology at Stanford University before earning his Ph.D. in geomorphology at UC Berkeley. Today he teaches at the University of Washington where he studies the evolution of topography and how geological processes shape landscapes and influence ecological systems. In this research, he has defined three principals to build soil fertility; minimal disturbance, cover cropping, and growing a diversity of crops. David has studied the success of these principals in agricultural systems around the world, from subsistence farmers to large commodity crops in North America. Healthy soils support more crop growth, have less erosion, and even look and smell healthier. The author of three books, David is a wealth of information on how soil life impacts plant productivity. References: 91: Carbon Sequestration (Podcast) @dig2grow (Twitter) Dig2Grow.com Floor Management for Soil

Dr. Charlotte Decock, Assistant Professor Cal Poly - Earth & Soil Sciences talks about soil management with the goal of capturing greenhouse gasses from the atmosphere and sequestering them in the soil. Her teaching and research focus on sustainable fertilizer and soil management in California’s specialty crops. This podcast is a recording from a workshop we co-costed on soil health. As part of California Climate Investments, the California Department of Food and Agriculture’s (CDFA) Healthy Soils Program distributed $5.8 million in cap and trade funds in 2018 to farming and ranching operations for the implementation of soil health practices that sequester carbon and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. This workshop brought together a team of researchers and growers from Cal Poly, the Vineyard Team, J. Lohr Vineyard, and Tablas Creek Vineyard to talk about their Demonstration Project grant from the Healthy Soils Program to demonstrate the benefits of compost application and no-till practices for vineyard ope