Crop Update - 2/1/2007
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At Viticulture 2007 and Wine Industry Workshop…
Friends, Food, Wine, and Celebration

The fast-approaching Viticulture 2007 and Wine Industry Workshop conference in Rochester on February 7-9 is not just a great conference and major trade show. It’s also a unique opportunity for industry colleagues to network while sharing great foods and wines, and toasting colleagues who have made major contributions to the grape and wine industry.

About 1,000 attendees will be able to intersperse a comprehensive educational agenda with “kicking the tires” on everything from giant grape harvesters to insurance policies and computer software related to the grape and wine industry. At the end of the day, and in the middle, they’ll be able to enjoy great foods and wines with friends and colleagues.

The first major meal, created around Sauvignon Blanc and Riesling and the “Farming for Flavor” theme, will be served for lunch the first day. Featured dishes prepared by Chef Leo Vogt of the Clarion Hotel include Chicken Roulade Diflore (Roulade of Chicken Breast with Spinach, Roasted Peppers, Onion, Garlic, and Toasted Pine Nuts over Glace de Poulet), served with the Sauvignon Blanc; and Seafood Stuffed Sole (Fresh Sole baked with a Scallop Crab Meat Stuffing laced with Dill Crème, served with Riesling).

Luncheons on the following days will be served on the trade show floor, and will feature a “Farms of New York” theme on Thursday and “Streets of New York” theme on Friday. The “Farms of New York” menu includes Cream of Mushroom and Minestrone soups, mixed greens, Penne Pasta with Seasonal Fresh Vegetables, and Roast Turkey. “Streets of New York” will include Pepperoni Sausage & Cheese Pizza, New York Deli Sandwiches, Vegetarian roll-ups, and New York Hot Dogs. The final feast, on Friday afternoon, there will be a “Monty Stamp Ice Cream Social” in the trade show.

The culinary highlight will be the Unity Banquet on Thursday evening, when numerous awards will be presented before and between courses. In addition to a salad with Concord Grapeseed Vinaigrette, New York State Cheddar Au Gratin Potatoes, and a selection of desserts, the main courses include Grilled Empire Filet with Bordelaise Sauce, Daniel Webster Chicken with apple herb stuffing, and Vegetable Wellington (Eggplant with Sun-dried Tomato Risotto in a Pastry Shell over Mushroom Essence).

Constellation Brands is the sponsor of the Unity Banquet. “We’re very grateful for Constellation’s strong support of Viticulture 2007 and the Unity Banquet,” said Jim Bedient, Chairman of the Viticulture 2007 Committee.

Viticulture 2007 is the largest grower-focused conference in the eastern United States, and includes the Wine Industry Workshop for winery owners and wine makers as well. The conference and trade show will be held at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center, with the adjoining Clarion as the host hotel. Additional information and registration are available at www.Viticulture2007.org.
MEDIA CONTACT: Jim Trezise, 585-394-3620, ext. 203, jimtrezise@nywgf.org

Sustainable Viticulture Workbook Project

We have heard from MANY volunteers already! But we are still looking for more volunteers to assist us with the refinement phase of a sustainable Viticulture Workbook developed through a cooperative effort of growers, processors, the Finger Lakes Regional Grape Program, Long Island Grape Program and the Lake Erie Regional Grape Program.

At this point in time we are asking for help from growers to go through the workbook, answering the questions that pertain to them (and let us know what questions do not pertain to their operation). If you participate what you will end up with is a scorecard with scores from 1 (best practice) to 4 (should look at this practice to see if it can be improved). In the Lake Erie Region there will be a follow up visit from Tim Weigle and hopefully a member of the SWCD from your county (they have the money to help with cost sharing) to discuss how you might be able to move the practices that received a rating of 4 to a rating closer to 1.

If you are interested in working with us on this project please send Edith an email at emb35@cornell.edu or give her a call at 716.672.6830 so she can schedule an appointment with you.

2006 NY & PA Pest Management Guidelines are available on-line at: http://ipmguidelines.org/grapes/
If you prefer a hard copy version you can contact your local Lake Erie Regional Grape Program Extension office or local county extension office for partner counties (Cattaraugus, Chautauqua, Erie, NY, Erie, PA and Niagara).
Download Adobe Reader - free software that lets you view, print, search, and share Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) files.

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Grape Integrated Pest Management

Tim Weigle

Viticulture leader promotes better science for better grapes; wins Excellence in IPM Award
by Mary M. Woodsen, Science Writer, NYS IPM Program

Geneva, NY: Tom Davenport's parents didn't want him coming back to the family farm once he finished school. They hoped for a better life for him. But Davenport wanted to stay in agriculture.

Davenport's first job out of college as a field rep for National Grape Cooperative took him into vineyards across New York and other Northeastern states. His job: helping growers put scientific research to use on their farms, using better methods to grow better grapes. The Cooperative is the parent company of Welch's Grape Juice.

Now, as director of viticulture for National Grape Cooperative, Davenport has received an "Excellence in IPM Award" from the New York State Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Program at Cornell University for his outstanding work in promoting least-toxic solutions for vineyard pest problems.

"Tom has done exceptional work behind the scenes in making sure that growers, land-grant researchers, and Cooperative Extension educators are on the same page in the same book," says Don Rutz, director of the New York State IPM Program. "Whether he's in a vineyard off Lake Erie or in Washington, D.C., Tom's contributions in finding bold new ways to bring sustainability to the farm and his industry can't be overlooked."

The first successful IPM tactic that Davenport helped fund was scouting methods developed at Cornell University for grape berry moth, perhaps the most destructive insect pest of grapes.

"That breakthrough potentially saves our members about $2.5 million a year in pesticides they don't need to use," Davenport says. "Now growers routinely scout for about a dozen pests that range from insects to weeds to plant diseases."

National Grape Cooperative's 1.300 members farm 50,000 acres in five states and one Canadian province. Many vineyards are sited on lakeshores. Scouting techniques and other IPM methods, Davenport notes, are essential in protecting watershed from runoff.

Many of National Grape's members offer their farms for research projects. "The innovators are the ones who are willing to be guinea pigs," Davenport says. "They maintain close working relationships with researchers, Cooperative Extension, and us."

Davenport receives his award on February 8 at Viticulture 2007 at the Rochester Riverside Convention Center in Rochester, NY.

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Grape Cultural Practices

Hans Walter-Peterson

Niagara Bud Damage

After seeing the results of some of the cutting and examination of Niagara buds done by Martin Goffinet and Mary Jean Welser last week, I went out this morning and grabbed some buds from our own vines here at the lab to check on bud mortality. I selected about 25 buds from each of three different portions of the farm (they are all in fairly cold spots of our vineyard as well) and cut them to see how many were still viable.

I cut a total of 85 buds and found 8 dead ones, for a mortality rate of a little under 10%. If you recall the picture that Martin provided of Niagara bud that he dissected, the base of the bud was browning and water soaked, while the upper portion still appeared to be fairly healthy. My dissecting ability is pretty rudimentary compared to Martin and Mary Jean, so I'm not able to say whether or not the buds that I observed today are similar.

I also noticed that overall wood quality on the vines that had heavier crops this year tended to be worse. This isn't necessarily a surprise, but is worth noting when combined with the possibility that bud mortality in Niagaras might be a bit higher than normal this winter.

My recommendation based on what I've seen so far is still for growers to consider retaining more buds on their Niagara vines if 1) you had a heavy crop on them this past year, and 2) the vineyard is in heavier soils. Monitor wood quality as you are pruning or checking up on crews, and I highly recommend doing your own bud cutting as well to see what kind of condition buds are in right now, and if you need to adjust your pruning levels.

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Weather Facts

Tim Weigle and Edith Byrne

Fri., 2/2 70% chance of snow likely. Cloudy, with a high near 32°. South wind 5 - 15 mph becoming NW. Friday night: 70% chance of snow showers likely, mainly after 9pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low near 16°. Wind chill values between 0 and 10°. Breezy, with a west wind between 16 - 22 mph. Sat., 2/3 80% chance for periods of snow showers. High near 20°. Breezy, with a west wind around 22 mph. Saturday night: 90% chance for occasional snow showers. Low near 9° and breezy. Sun., 2/4 90% chance for occasional snow showers. High near 13°. Sunday night: 60% chance of snow showers likely. Cloudy, with a low near 4°. Mon., 2/5 A 40% chance of snow showers. Cloudy, with a high near 11°. Monday night: 60% chance of snow showers likely. Cloudy, with a low near 4°. Tues., 2/6 60% chance of snow showers likely. Cloudy, with a high near 12°. Tuesday night: 60% chance of snow showers likely. Cloudy, with a low near 7°. Wed., 2/7 60% chance of snow showers likely. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 18°. Average precipitation amount for January is 2.59" - we have ended the month with 5.69" of precipitation here at the Fredonia Lab! That is 3.10" more than average. I don't think anyone would say that we haven't had a snowy month. The average precipitation amount for February is 2.01". The forecast is calling for snow every day next week along with some very cold temperatures! Don't forget that you can follow the DAILY high and low (updated daily) by visiting http://lergp.cce.cornell.edu/Dailys2007.htm. Also, from the main weather page (http://lergp.cce.cornell.edu/weather.htm) you can navigate to other weather information/pages that we maintain for your information and use. Weather Facts Information: through Wednesday 1/31/2007 High Low Pct. GDDs Jan. GDDs Apr. GDDs 22 17 0.12 0 3 0   Jan. accum. Apr. accum. per/day accum. Average GDDs: 1.60 0.00 0.14 January Precipitation: 5.69"   Average Precipitation (January) 2.59 "   Year-to-Date Precipitation 5.69"   Average High 31.5°     Average Low 17.4°

The weather proverb from the Farmer's Almanac this week is:

If Groundhog Day (2/2) be fair and bright, Winter will have another flight . . .

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UPCOMING EVENTS:

Lake Erie Regional Grape Program Extension Team Members:

Andy Muza	Extension Agent, Erie County, PA Cooperative Extension	(814) 825-0900
Barry Shaffer	Area Extension Farm Business Management Educator	(716) 679-3185
Hans Walter-Peterson	Area Extension Grape Cultural Practices Educator	(716) 672-2191
Tim Weigle	Sr. Area Extension Educator, Grape IPM	(716) 672-6830

For any questions or comments on the format of this update please contact Tim Weigle at: timweigl@netsync.net

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