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Around The Vineyard

or if a complete replant would be faster and more common for 10 percent or more of the buds to not
economical. take, and be prepared to either re-graft in-house,
call the budder to come back, or replant as needed.
In detailing the conversion timeline, Zapotocky
pointed to winter as the period to conduct a thor- Do not expect any production during the grafting
ough assessment of vineyard blocks and securing year though. Zapotocky estimates a block should
source materials before bud swell. Bud wood sourc- yield 50 to 70 percent in the first year post grafting
ing can be from local sources like other farmers (do and then 90 to 100 percent by the second year.
your due diligence) or in partnership with a nursery During the field prep for the grafting, be sure to
that may sell certified material. Be mindful that as track the prevalence of trunk disease in order to
viruses can come in one form or another, conduct understand the future lifespan of the block. Also,
virus testing to assess the potential risk your busi- an examination of the growth from individual
ness/farm plan can tolerate if a virus is found. clones of different varieties can determine which
specific clone (or varietals) proved to be the most
Planning considerations that Zapotocky noted: successful for future planting or grafting projects.
April through June is grafting season. Here, he cited
the importance of vetting the grafter within the Marketing Alternate Varietals
local winegrowing community. Weed management:
one farming task that is often overlooked through- For those winemakers looking to expand into
out the conversion process is weed management. alternate varietals, Dr. Damien Wilson, Sonoma
Be certain to take care of any weeds before the State University’s inaugural Hamel Family Chair
grafter begins their work. Budwood stock: a met- in Wine Business Education, stressed the need to
ric of two to three times the amount of buds for focus on the consumer. As research has demon-
the number of plants described. Success rate: it is strated, global consumption of wine dropped from

Photo Credit: George Rose

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