A Technical Guide
for Wine Producers

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WYNBOER GUIDELINES
FOR FEBRUARY 2001

1 PLANNING

  • Short term
    • Consult your winemaker about your cellar's grading system and / or requirements for specific cultivars for the impending harvesting season.
    • Monitor the ripeness of the grapes in the various blocks and plan the harvesting programme in conjunction with your winemaker and viticulturist.
    • Keep detailed records of, amongst others, the irrigation, ripening and production of each block.
  • Long term
    • Orders for vines must be placed before the end of March.
    • Order seed for cover crop.
    • Book contractor for soil preparation as well as lime and / or phosphate and / or gypsum if soil analyses indicate shortages which have to be adjusted during soil preparation.
  • Financial
  • Contact VinPro (SA) agricultural economists for information about:
    • Purchase of land or farm evaluation
    • Feasibility studies and breakeven analyses
    • Establishment planning and cost
    • Budgets and cash flow statements
    2 VINEYARD PROGRAMME

  • Monitoring ripeness
    • Take regular bunch or berry samples to monitor the ripening process of each vineyard (refer to Wynboer Guidelines for January for sampling procedure).
    • Make an effort to harvest each vineyard at optimal ripeness.
  • Harvesting of grapes
    • Limit the labourer's function as far as possible to cutting of the grapes. A labourer who is hired to cut grapes and then has to carry baskets on his back for most of the day is not utilised efficiently.
    • Productivity of labourers may be increased by good management and supervision as well as payment of incentive bonuses or the implementation of piecework.
    • By harvesting at the coolest time of the day (in other words from about sunrise to lunch):
    • the labourers' productivity is increased,
    • the quality of the grapes is optimised,
    • the cellar's cooling facilities are least taxed.
    • Do not allow a load of grapes to lie overnight in the pressing bin and do not tread on the grapes in the bin either.
    • If you have inferior grapes due to your circumstances beyond your control, deliver these separately.
    • Your interest in the cellar should extend beyond the dumping bin, it is your product after all.
    • If an opportunity presents itself, labourers will appreciate a cellar tour - at which time you can show them, inter alia, the dangers of leaving scissors and stones among the grapes.
  • Disease and pest control
    • Only use control measures if the safety period of the pesticide allows.
    • Disease control in late ripening cultivars as well as young vines should not be neglected.
    • Post-harvest sulphuring is recommended when vines are seriously infested with erinose and also where o‹dium occurs on leaves and shoots.
  • Irrigation
    - Pre-harvest
    • The water consumption of vineyards is at its highest in February.
    • Attempt to schedule irrigation when soil water is decreasing, but at no stage allow the vineyard to experience a water shortage during the ripening phase.
    • Vineyards should therefore have sufficient water supply during the ripening stage to ensure even and ideal ripening.
    • Both excessive water supply and water shortages are detrimental to grape quality in the ripening period.
    - Post-harvest
    • If water is available, supplement the soil profile to its full root depth with the post-harvest irrigation.
    • Although the vine's water requirement is still high in the post-harvest period, take care not to over-irrigate, for the resultant drowning also limits the important root growth cycle after the harvest.
  • Fertilisation
    • Post-harvest fertilisation is only important in vineyards with normal or poor vigour.
    • Where water is limited, apply the required fertiliser before the post-harvest irrigation.
    • Wait ± three to four weeks after the harvest before applying post-harvest fertilisation in intensively irrigated areas.
    • Fertilisation of vineyards that are three years old or younger and growing vigorously is not recommended.
  • Foliage management
    • Active vegetative growth during ripening is detrimental to grape quality.
    • Tip actively growing shoots in late cultivars.
    • Sensible moisture stress may limit active shoot growth.
  • Development of young vines
    • Continue with green shoot development if there is enough time on hand.
    • Vines top-grafted in November still require thorough after-care.
  • Pruning of roots
    • May be done to lessen soil compaction and then only in alternative rows after the harvest and before applying post-harvest fertilisation and irrigation.

    A more detailed version may be ordered from Mrs Gerda Kriel at 021-8073027.

    Compiled by: VinPro (SA) Consultation Services

    		• Wynboer is incorporated in WineLand, magazine of the SA wine producers.

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