by Lodi Growers | Feb 17, 2016 | Blog, Grapes, Uncategorized, Vineyards
W. Douglas Gubler, Department of Plant Pathology, University of California, Davis, CA Fungal pathogens of grapevines all produce structures that allow them to overwinter on grapevine cordons, spurs, and canes. In this way the fungi produce spores the following year...
by Lodi Growers | Jan 20, 2016 | Blog, Grapes, Vineyards
Vineyards have two environments – one above ground and another below ground. The above ground environment is our visible domain where we can witness both atmospheric events and grapevine responses to them. In contrast, our ability to observe events...
by Lodi Growers | Dec 16, 2015 | Blog, Grapes, Vineyards
Micronutrients are mineral elements required in small quantities by plants for normal growth and development. They include iron, manganese, copper, zinc, boron, molybdenum, and chloride. The micronutrients tend be overshadowed by the macronutrients, especially...
by Lodi Growers | Nov 24, 2015 | Blog, Uncategorized
In my last Lodi Growers Coffee Shop article, we considered nitrogen’s pivotal role and impacts on grapevines. In this article, we investigate nitrogen management. As in the management of all mineral nutrients, vine nutrient demand is the place to begin...
by Lodi Growers | Nov 17, 2015 | Blog, Uncategorized
In wine grape growing, nitrogen (N) receives a great deal of attention for several reasons. First, N is a component of numerous molecules essential for life, including a wide array of proteins, nucleic acids, and chlorophyll. As a result, nitrogen has broader...
by Lodi Growers | Nov 10, 2015 | Blog, Uncategorized
Grape growers are expected to be competent at a wide-ranging of tasks. For example, they have to be good at equipment maintenance, pruning, labor relations and finances, to list but a few of the skills that are necessary to succeed as a grower. Of all the skills that...
by Lodi Growers | Nov 3, 2015 | Blog, Uncategorized
The 2015 Harvest came to a close by the second week of October. Harvest began on the earliest date that most anyone can remember. It is an interesting year to say the least, but there have been previous harvest starts in July. Let’s look back on some local...
by Lodi Growers | Oct 27, 2015 | Uncategorized
I had the great pleasure of attending the 18th International congress on viruses of the grapevine (ICVG) held on September 7-11 in Ankara, Turkey. Every three years, ICVG brings together the world’s best and brightest minds to report on the cutting-edge frontier...
by Lodi Growers | Oct 20, 2015 | Blog, Uncategorized
The Lodi Winegrape Commission and the University of California Cooperative Extension (UCCE) have a long history of working together to achieve our common goal of communicating research insights about best management practices to Lodi growers. In light of this, the...
by Lodi Growers | Oct 12, 2015 | Blog, Uncategorized
MONDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2015. BY STAN GRANT, VITICULTURIST. Cover crops provide an array of important benefits to vineyards. These include direct benefits that improve soil tilth, build soil structure, enhance the root environment, limit soil erosion, and modify the...
by Lodi Growers | Sep 29, 2015 | Blog
External pressures on mineral nutrient use in vineyards come from several directions. On the one hand, to remain competitive, we need to contain applied mineral nutrient costs even while costs of some fertilizers are being driven upward by the growing global...
by Lodi Growers | Sep 22, 2015 | Blog, Uncategorized
“Like sands through the hourglass, so are the days of our lives” was a quote television catchphrase from a long‐running soap opera, which is appropriate for this global market update. With harvest in full swing in the Northern Hemisphere, buyers are truing up...
by Lodi Growers | Sep 8, 2015 | Blog, Uncategorized
Some grapevine diseases can be identified easily in the field by signs of the pathogen, which include microscopic and macroscopic microbial cells, tissues, and structures. For example, the appearance of the powdery mildew fungus on the surface of infected leaves and...
by Lodi Growers | Aug 25, 2015 | Blog, Uncategorized
California winegrape growers with losses due to grapevine red blotch-associated virus (GRBaV), the causative agent of red blotch disease, may be eligible for financial assistance for vine replacement from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Tree Assistance...
by Lodi Growers | Aug 18, 2015 | Blog, Uncategorized
Those of us involved in agriculture are well aware of the increasing concerns about water in California. Even before the current drought, new water regulations were in the works, irrigation district water costs were increasing, and in many locations, access to...
