Vineyard Pre-Planting Tips

Posted by Christina Herrick|January 11, 2012

John Duarte, president and CEO of Duarte Nursery in Hughson, CA, says growers should carefully analyze the site on which they plan to plant new winegrapes before moving forward. That analysis should provide answers to the following questions:

Does the site have a vineyard history?
Are nematodes or phylloxera already being established there?
What is the soil texture?
Is it located in a warmer climate or cooler climate?
What are the water resources?
Does it have district water or good, fresh well water, or is it a situation where brackishness or water quality might be an issue?
What kind of contract does the grower have?

Once those questions are answered, nursery experts can advise the grower on whether to select nematode-resistant rootstocks or salt-resistant rootstocks. A saltier site may require a higher vigor stock.

In areas where there is a shallower water table underneath the vineyard, growers may have water clogging problems. In those instances, the grower should select a rootstock that has some wet soil tolerance.

Duarte emphasized that growers should make sure they are buying virus-free stock. They need to know the genetic makeup of the plant material they are buying, and should also have the nursery show them the disease-free status of the material.

A version of this article originally appeared in “The Crush,” a publication of the California Association of Winegrape Growers.