Page 47 - Grapevine March-April 2020

Around The Vineyard

“A lot of our decisions regarding spur vs. cane “Cane pruning requires a high level of expertise,
pruning is based upon varietal,” Kim Myer told is more expensive and takes more time,” Myer
The Grapevine Magazine. Myer, along with her added. “You have to make very educated choices
husband, Ben, co-stewards land in North Carolina about each and every vine. However, cane pruning
that’s been in the family for 10 generations. has many advantages: frost protection, even pro-
Their 10.5-acre vineyard, Laurel Gray, features duction and even spacing of growing shoots in the
estate French vinifera vines such as Chardonnay, spring.”
Viognier, Pinot Gris, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon,
Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Their winery, Similar to what Myer does at Laurel Gray,
Yadkin Valley Wine Company, produces award-win- Westover incorporates both methods for individual
ning selections, including a signature Bourdeaux vines on some of his clients’ properties. “This isn’t
blend, Scarlet Mountain; Estate Barrel Fermented typical, but can help increase the yield on vines that
Chardonnay; and Estate Cabernet Sauvignon, have high vigor but low yields due to small cluster
Merlot and Viognier. size or shading of lower bud position of the spurs,”
he said. “Careful consideration should be made as
“Spur pruning is used for varieties that show high to where to use this practice, as the extra buds can
fruitfulness on basal buds. For example, Cabernet cause crowding in the canopy, which can increase
Sauvignon works very well on spur pruning—until disease pressure in wet, humid climates.”
it’s time to renew the cordons. When renewing, we
cane prune in order to establish a new healthy cor- Another mitigating factor for following a pruning
don,” she said. “Viognier produced best when cane- method is the rumbling advance of mechanized
pruned because this technique allows more light on or “no-touch” vineyard operations. The University
to the cordon and into the canopy.” of California Agriculture and Natural Resources
Department released data in 2019 from a 53-acre
“Generally, spur pruning, once established, is less
labor-intensive. It’s easy to do and easy to teach,
especially for vines that are trained on fences or
trellises,” Myer added.

Westover provided further recommendations. “In
general, sites that require in-row vine spacing wider
than four feet are better adapted to a cordon/
spur-pruning system to best utilize the space in
the fruiting zone, as laying canes longer than 18-24
inches can result in poor shoot size uniformity in
many varieties,” he said.

“Cane pruning, on the other hand, results in a
vine that has a lower number of pruning wounds
than a vine that is spur-pruned. Therefore, there
might be less opportunity for certain fungal diseas-
es that infect pruning wounds and cause grapevine
trunk diseases,” he said. “Additionally, there’s less
old wood on a cane-pruned vine and less potential
area for disease spores to overwinter, such as pho-
mopsis or other GTD-associated pathogens. Some
varieties are also known to be more fruitful when
cane-pruned, such as Nebbiolo or Malvasia Bianca.”

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