Another Clip From our Boys on NC WINE TV.

Spray

Today we sprayed

Captan
Elite
Phosphorous Acid

We are seeing the Downy die off now and spraying Phosphorous Acid again so that we cover anything that we missed on the first spray.

Some Pics

Picture of Short Row

Picture down Cabernet Vine

Picture of a Cabernet Cluster

Getting Rid Of Downy Mildew

After speaking with several people today (Thanks Gill and Frank) we decided to spray some phosphorous acid on the vines to help eradicate the DM. We will spray at a high rate and check the vines out for the next few days to see if we see the existing DM dry up. We will then spray again in another 5 days to make sure we hit anything that got missed on the first spray. I think I missed signs of DM last week because I am still learning the signs of disease on the vines and today I am paying the price of having to eradicate it. Hey we live and we learn.

We will also hit the vines with some Sevin for Jap Beatles that we saw on our newly planted Niagara plants.

Todays spray:
Phosphorous Acid
Sevin

Disease

As I thought...all of this rain has brought Downy Mildew into the vineyard. I will need to find out what I need to do it rid my vineyard of it now. Will keep you posted.

Sprayed

Today we sprayed

Sulfur
Captan

Taken a chance with Sulfur because it is suppose to be in the 90's this weekend.

I HATE THE RAIN!!!!

Can you stop...really can you stop raining!!! I don't know when I have hated the rain more than I do now. Every time I am in the vineyard I come out soaked to my underwear!!! It is true, but I have to get in the vineyard to position shoots, hedge and pull leaves.

Tonight we finished hedging the vineyard. Wow, is a complete month sooner than last year. The vines are growing like crazy because of all of this rain and we will have to hedge again before we place the bird netting on them.

The vineyard is looking great. I am concerned with mildew because of all of this rain. Our 7 day interval of spraying is tomorrow and we should have sprayed about 4 days ago because of the rain, but couldn't because it has rained everyday and we would have just wasted our chemicals. It looks like they are calling for rain in the morning but should clear off by the afternoon and reach 90 with sun. This should continue through the weekend so we should get a good soaking spray on the vines tomorrow afternoon.

June 11-Another Rain, Another Spray

On June 11 we sprayed vineyard again because of rain.

Sulfur
Captan

Escorted out by Mother Nature

Well it is becoming a trend this year...Mother Nature escorted me out of the vineyard again today with a lightening show. I will work in the rain and even thunder but I am not taking my chances with miles of metal wires and hundreds of metal post.

Before the lightening showed up we were able to finish hedging the Merlot vines. I tell you these babies are growing this year. We didn't hedge last year until the middle of July and today we finished the Merlots and next week we will start the Cab Sav.

Note to self...don't cut your finger with the shears next time...OOUUCCHH!!!

North Carolina Wine TV

This past week I found a new Website called http://northcarolinawine.tv/. This website was developed by two marketing guys out of the Raleigh-Durham area. Their main focus is to try wine from all of the North Carolina wineries and commit on them.

The reason why I enjoy this website is because these guys are not snotty wine critics, but just everyday Joes who are trying to understand North Carolina Wine. They film their shows from different locations and buy their wine from grocery stores or Total Wine just like everyday Joes would.

They have just started up this website and only have 5 episode and will continue posting shows every Tuesday and Thursday. Here is one of the episodes from the website.

North Carolina Wine TV Episode 5: Biltmore Estate Century Red Wine from Kipp Bodnar on Vimeo.

Want to Build an Ark???

WOW...I don't think I have seen it rain this much in years and I am feeling it in our spray program. We are spraying our 8th spray of the year today and man this stuff isn't cheap!!!!

6/8 Spray
Captan
Sulfur

What's Going On?

5/4-Sprayed Sulfur and Diathane

5/6-Rained

5/7-Sprayed Sulfur and Diathane

5/11-Sprayed Diathane and Elite

5/18-sprayed Sulfur and Diathane

5/20-Placed 5 oz of 10-14-10 around Cab Sav.

5/26-Entire Vineyard in full bloom

5/27-Sprayed Flint

5/29-Rained

5/30-Sprayed Flint and Diathane

Grow...Babies...Grow

Here are our 2009 Merlot Babies Growing.

Here are our newest members to our family. On the Left are our Muscats and on the Right our Niagara.