Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather.
John Ruskin
So, it's been raining a lot lately... Approximately 10" in July, three times more than average. Good thing we have a well drained site and thin canopy (good airflow, reduced disease). Despite the rain, the past couple of weeks have been filled with, weeding, spraying, classes, fertilizing, post pounding, and some building progress.
John Ruskin
So, it's been raining a lot lately... Approximately 10" in July, three times more than average. Good thing we have a well drained site and thin canopy (good airflow, reduced disease). Despite the rain, the past couple of weeks have been filled with, weeding, spraying, classes, fertilizing, post pounding, and some building progress.
Water
The sump pit and drains were installed in the basement.
Will drilled the hole for the water line through the foundation wall.
Electricity
Dan's Electric---Inwood, IA 7.17.10
Will got to help install the conduit. They had to dig under the foundation to run the electric conduit into the basement before the floor was poured.
Hammock
Someday... Right??
Dad working side-by-side with his grandson. 7.18.10
With all of the rain we have been getting the weeds continue to grow... Earlier in the season we were able to carefully spray around the vines and in the rows. Weed control is one of the most important items on the list to stay on top of in a new vineyard. Thankfully the vines are also growing, however, this means we must be more careful with spray around the vines. To reduce the risk of spray damage/drift, we hand cultivated 2 feet in diameter around the vines and sprayed the remaining area in the rows.
It took us about a week and a half to accomplish weeding the entire vineyard while trying to balance the rest of our to-dos.
Music necessary.
Dyl on a quest to find the tallest vine in the vineyard. 7.21.10
Some vines are getting as tall as Will (6 ft), while most are averaging out to about 5 feet. Need to get our trellis up!!! The picture above was taken on the "Knoll" located on the Southeast edge of the vineyard. Likely the most vigorous site due to the sandier soil --- warmer roots. The winery is being built where you can see the open soil and odd humps in the background.
Trellis
So thankful we were able to purchase our post pounder from from a family friend, and fellow fencer... Sure beats augering---in speed and ease...
Since the vines planted on the "Knoll" are growing the most vigorously we will hopefully be able to finish that section of the trellis by this weekend (8.9.10)...
Winery Building
Due to the rain things are moving a bit more slowly than hoped... Not to say there hasn't been anything accomplished!
The floor trusses arrive! 7.19.10
The floor trusses that go above the basement arrived on a warm late afternoon.
Above, Will gives a tour of our floorless/wallless winery.
7.25.10
Concrete poured...
7.26.10
Trusses installed...
And now we wait for the rain to let up, the sun to come out, and the soil to dry... We met with our contractor today (8.2.10) to make some decisions. Roof pitch and siding, decided. We are really happy with the way the building is looking on computer---can't wait to see it in real life!
Vineyard Visits
As you may know we've been taking classes through DMACC to be certified viticulturists and enologists.This past weekend we were in Ankeny for a residential class (hands on learning). This was for a viticulture class taught by Randal Voss, we visited vineyards and looked at probable/common issues in the vineyard...
VIN 103, (vineyard pest management) scouting for insects and diseases...
Japanese Beetles devouring defensless grape leaves. Luckily we havn't seen these guys in our vineyard yet!
Downey mildew on grapes... Phomopsis on shoots...
Anthracnose on grapes...
Looking at a very vigorous vineyard.
VIN 104 (grape growing for wine production), checking out some vineyards for canopy management... Canopy management important for quality fruit.
Wine!
On the way back home we picked up our press! We purchased our press from Prairie Crossing Vineyard and Winery located outside of Treynor, IA. They were upgrading, and it was exactly what we were looking for... (They make a delicious port! "Portfolio")
It was an interesting/intense ride over to get it... Let's just say we were glad to get some weight on the trailer, and we were also glad that it fit onto the trailer. ;o)
Untill next time... Cheers!
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