Most recent on the vine column
actually, it might not have made it in, as I missed the deadline!
I’m writing this column from the porch of one of my rental properties in beautiful Holland, Michigan. My wife and I usually return to the shores of Lake Michigan in late May and spend 2-3 weeks working with the staff to assure that property is in great shape for the upcoming rental season. The West Michigan shoreline offers incredible beaches, sunny days and a pluther of quaint lakefront towns showcasing art festivals, B&Bs and many fine shops. The fishing is great too!! Visit my website at www.rosewoodpointe.com and take your family north for a week!
Like North Carolina, Michigan has several American Viticultural Areas (AVAs), four to be exact, one of which is just to the south of Holland running along the shores of Lake Michigan. The waters of Lake Michigan create a unique macroclimate that shelters the grapes from the extreme cold in the winter. I am relating all of this wonderful information to you because a) more North Carolinians should visit West Michigan and b) I have decided that our first bottling of wine from will bear the label of our resort, Rosewood Pointe. Grapes will be grown in North Carolina, made to wine in North Carolina and marketed in Michigan!!
This fall, fingers crossed, I may have enough grapes to make a small amount of wine. While I’m still not sure where the wine will be produced, if it’s any good, it will be given away at my resort in Michigan. At some point, one of the rental units may be converted into a tasting room overlooking the lake. My wife and I plan to feature North Carolina wine and probably a couple wines (whites) from the local Michigan vineyards as well. Regional cooperation is a win/win for everyone!
The grape growers reading the column are probably wondering how I can spend three weeks away from my little vineyard during growing season. The answer is, I don’t have a choice. In the weeks leading up to my departure, I made sure that the vineyard was in good shape to be successful during my absence. An individual was hired to stay on top of the daily chores and I gave all the vines a good spray of Sulfur and a one-time shot of Dithane before I left. Mesh deer netting was erected on both sides of the vineyard (7.5’ feet high) and motion detectors that trigger a radio and lights were mounted on the open ends. Gallons of a rotting egg solution were sprayed on the perimeters to further disincentivize the deer from entering the property. Deer hate rotting eggs and the smell is imperceptible to humans when mixed twelve eggs to every five gallons of water. A study out of the University of Alabama proved it was by far the most effective in controlling deer damage. Try it!!
The Japanese Beetle season is rapidly approaching!! It usually starts in early to late June. I’ve got a ton of birds at my place now…especially Blue Jays and Purple Martins. They’ve been busily eating the grubs for most of May, so I’m hoping that this year I won’t have to spray any Sevin. We’ll see how that all unfolds. In any event, I do have some alternate remedies that will be utilized before spraying Sevin.
The new Pinotage plantings continue to do very well. They are flourishing in the low pH soil and seem to be digging their location. It’s still early in the year, but confidence is high that they will get up to the wire by fall. The second year plants, when I left, were recovering quite nicely from the massive amount of deer damage which occurred before the fence was erected. The liming of the soil last fall appears to have helped the plants with their nutrient uptake and many of the plants that struggled last year are doing great this year. However, there still are about 20-30 plants that are suffering from some sort of residual herbicide damage or perhaps some sort of disease that may have come out of the nursery? I don’t know, the petioles need to be sent in for analysis and diagnosis.
My next column in August will tell much more about how well the vineyard is faring through the rigors of summer and the annual summer ravaging by the beetles. I am still committed to keeping sprays to an absolute minimum and avoiding the use of herbicides and pesticides unless absolutely necessary! Have a great summer and visit www.greatncwines.com for regular updates!