Free Labor

This praying mantis ootheca would not survive if I sprayed even organic fungicide

One thing about farmers is they love free labor. It's tricky getting people to work for free but other animals, like praying mantis', spiders and bees provide crop protection services "for the love of the game", if you will.

I'm grateful for the fleet of arachnids, beetles, wasps, and mantids that provide security services in my vineyard. If I harmed them with sulfur spray or stylet oil I would lose their help and companionship. (Jumping spiders are like the cutest, y'all!)

Starting Cuttings

To get to a healthy start that can weather the rigors of the vineyard, I am using a hybrid system, meant to increase the likelihood that a cutting will survive the process, but also without a heavy investment of labor. Give the potted cuttings a dowsing rinse, so the soil

Mushrooms are a Good Thing™️

Forests, with their wealth of falling leaves, needles, branches and entire trees, are the perfect environment for fungal diversity. To the extent possible, as agricultural professionals, we should try to emulate the forest floor. These wood chips are a great example, supporting the 'pheasant's back' mushroom

Wine of the future

The wine industry has layers to it. While bottling season is in the offing, we also have cuttings beginning to take root. It's possible to have these grow outside, in a garden bed, but I think I get more survivors by starting them inside in a bucket of

Bottling Day

It wasn't the only bottling day but we got some 25 Cayuga bottled. The Cayuga chemistry was pretty nearly perfect, 25 was a great year for grape growing in our area. Sangiovese and Marechal Foch were racked and left to settle. I WILL get pictures next time.

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Starting Cuttings

Mushrooms are a Good Thing™️

Wine of the future

Bottling Day