A Week on the Estate: Pruning Vines, Avian Valentine & Midwinter Warmers
We hope we find you safe, warm and well this weekend. This winter has been another topsy-turvy one but brighter days are coming. The long nights are receding, meteorological spring is only three weeks away and everywhere we look new life is primed to burst forth. That said, the weekend weather outlook is cold and dull, but after the antics of Éowyn and her friends, we’ll settle for that. If you’re in our neck of the woods, expect a temperature range of 6C-1C with dark overcast, an occasional light shower and a biting north-easterly breeze.
How time flies! Back in the spring of 2023, the hard-working Vineworks team planted 12,600 grape vines close to the Old Rectory to create an 8.9-acre organic vineyard. Ours is Lincolnshire’s 12th vineyard and the combination of a gentle, south-facing slope with a chalk and limestone bedrock will allow us to emulate the quality of wines grown in Champagne and South-East England while adding our own distinctive character. Now, at the beginning of our vineyard’s third season, the Vineworks team has returned to tackle the important and time-consuming job of pruning our young vines.
Deciding on how each vine should be pruned is a matter of experience and judgement. Some plants are pruned back to just above the fruiting wire while others are taken back to the lower two buds within the tubes. Vines are best pruned in winter when they’re dormant and the process is vital to keep the plants healthy and productive. Trimming old growth stimulates new growth, while boosting air circulation keeps unhelpful fungi at bay.
Every one of our 12,000+ vines has to be assessed and pruned. Even though it takes a skilled pruner less than a minute per vine, it still represents hundreds of hours of work. Paul photographed one of the many that he tackled himself and he reckons he’s not reached optimal pruning speed just yet. With this many plants to practice on, however, we reckon he’s bound to get quicker.
The trimmings won’t go to waste. They’ll be mulched and mown back into the soil when it dries out. If you’d like to get involved at the beginning of this exciting venture, why not sponsor a vine? Alternatively, as Valentine’s Day is coming soon, why not give your beloved a stake in the future of English wine? Click HERE to discover more.*
