Cultural Practices

Just as in humans, nutritional balance within the vine is essential to consistent fruit quality and quantity. How do you balance nutrition in the vineyard? While the majority of nutritional management can be dealt with prior to planting, such as adjusting soil pH and organic matter, vineyard soil management is a continual process and requires monitoring to ensure healthy, productive vines. It's better to maintain proper soil health practices than to try to correct problems when leaf symptoms are visible. How can you keep an eye on vineyard nutrition? Soil and petiole testing will help you monitor nutrients available in the soil and in the plants. We recommend doing BOTH soil and petiole testing to verify that what you have available in the soil is actually getting into the vines. If a petiole test result indicates a deficiency, but soil test results indicate adequate levels of a nutrient, an alternative problem, such as improper soil pH or inadequate water drainage, could be the culprit.
Complete Cultural Practices Spring Content
Kevin Martin, Extension Educator, Business Management

Lake Erie Grape belt low temperatures in Feb 2015 reached -19 to -29 degrees F and this has caused variable damage to fruiting buds of grapevines. Viticulture Specialist, Luke Haggerty, and the CLEREL staff are evaluating the extent of bud damage from several vineyards across the region.
Tim Weigle, Team Leader, Statewide Grape IPM Specialist

Would you like to see the current weather and grape pest information found on NEWA without having to click through the website? Then eNEWA is for you. eNEWA is a daily email that contains current weather and pest model information from a station, or stations, near you. The email will contain; 1) high, low and average temperature, rainfall, wind speed and relative humidity 2) the 5-day forecast for these weather parameters, 3) GDD totals (Base 50F), 4) 5-day GDD (Base 50F) forecast and 5) model results for powdery mildew, black rot, Phomopsis and grape berry moth. The weather information is provided for not only the current day but for the past two days as well.
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I

Choose the regional program that best meets your needs.

Fruit Thinning in Wine Grape Varieties
by Hans Walter-Peterson
Cluster thinning is often employed in wine varieties to help achieve a certain crop load and quality level. The amount of fruit to remove from a given vine is a function of many individual factors, including vine vigor, variety and rootstock, growing season conditions, and even the contract with the buyer. Because conditions in eastern North America can vary greatly from year to year, the need for cluster thinning and the amount to be removed can also change every season. The goal of cluster thinning, then, is to achieve both the quality and quantity parameters that will satisfy both the grower and their buyers.
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I

Seasonal Primer for Grape Production
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I

Soil and petiole testing can provide a clear picture of what is going on in your vineyard. The soil tests will determine what nutrients are available to be taken up by the vines' roots, and the petiole tests will show whether or not the roots are actually absorbing those nutrients. Once you have the soil tests, you have one side of the story, and petiole tests will give you the other side of the vine nutrient story.
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Business Programs
Through its Business Programs, USDA Rural Development provides for business credit needs in under-served rural areas, often in partnership with private-sector lenders.
Please visit their website for more up to date information: http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/LP_BusinessPrograms.html
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Images of the Eichhorn-Lorenz Phenological Stages
Adapted from Eichhorn and Lorenz (1977) and Lorenz (1994)
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I

Wool (doeskin stage): brownish wool clearly visible
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I

Bud burst: green shoot first clearly visible
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I

First leaf unfolded and spread away from shoot
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I

Two to three leaves unfolded
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I

Five to six leaves unfolded: inflorescence clearly visible
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I

Inflorescence fully developed: flowers separating
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I

Beginning of flowering: first caps falling
Nitrogen Worksheet
Kevin Martin, Extension Educator, Business Management
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: June 4, 2015
Freeze Damage
Last Modified: February 24, 2015

Lake Erie Grape belt low temperatures in Feb 2015 reached -19 to -29 degrees F and this has caused variable damage to fruiting buds of grapevines. Viticulture Specialist, Luke Haggerty, and the CLEREL staff are evaluating the extent of bud damage from several vineyards across the region.
Beta Testing of eNEWA for Grapes
Tim Weigle, Team Leader, Statewide Grape IPM Specialist
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: February 10, 2014

Would you like to see the current weather and grape pest information found on NEWA without having to click through the website? Then eNEWA is for you. eNEWA is a daily email that contains current weather and pest model information from a station, or stations, near you. The email will contain; 1) high, low and average temperature, rainfall, wind speed and relative humidity 2) the 5-day forecast for these weather parameters, 3) GDD totals (Base 50F), 4) 5-day GDD (Base 50F) forecast and 5) model results for powdery mildew, black rot, Phomopsis and grape berry moth. The weather information is provided for not only the current day but for the past two days as well.
Where in New York Are You? / Some added Resources
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: November 13, 2013

Choose the regional program that best meets your needs.
Fruit Thinning in Wine Grape Varieties
Last Modified: July 22, 2013

Fruit Thinning in Wine Grape Varieties
by Hans Walter-Peterson
Cluster thinning is often employed in wine varieties to help achieve a certain crop load and quality level. The amount of fruit to remove from a given vine is a function of many individual factors, including vine vigor, variety and rootstock, growing season conditions, and even the contract with the buyer. Because conditions in eastern North America can vary greatly from year to year, the need for cluster thinning and the amount to be removed can also change every season. The goal of cluster thinning, then, is to achieve both the quality and quantity parameters that will satisfy both the grower and their buyers.
Seasonal Primer for Grape Production
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: March 14, 2013

Seasonal Primer for Grape Production
Soil and Petiole Testing
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: March 13, 2013

Soil and petiole testing can provide a clear picture of what is going on in your vineyard. The soil tests will determine what nutrients are available to be taken up by the vines' roots, and the petiole tests will show whether or not the roots are actually absorbing those nutrients. Once you have the soil tests, you have one side of the story, and petiole tests will give you the other side of the vine nutrient story.
USDA Rural Development for Businesses and Cooperatives
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: March 13, 2013
Business Programs
Through its Business Programs, USDA Rural Development provides for business credit needs in under-served rural areas, often in partnership with private-sector lenders.
Please visit their website for more up to date information: http://www.rurdev.usda.gov/LP_BusinessPrograms.html
Eichhorn-Lorenz Phenological Stages
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: January 20, 2013
Images of the Eichhorn-Lorenz Phenological Stages
Adapted from Eichhorn and Lorenz (1977) and Lorenz (1994)
PHENOLOGICAL STAGES: Wool (doeskin stage)
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: January 17, 2013

Wool (doeskin stage): brownish wool clearly visible
PHENOLOGICAL STAGES: Bud burst: green shoot first clearly visible
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: January 16, 2013

Bud burst: green shoot first clearly visible
PHENOLOGICAL STAGES: First leaf unfolded and spread away from shoot
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: January 15, 2013

First leaf unfolded and spread away from shoot
PHENOLOGICAL STAGES: Two to three leaves unfolded
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: January 14, 2013

Two to three leaves unfolded
PHENOLOGICAL STAGES: Five-six leaves unfolded: inflorescence clearly visible
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: January 13, 2013

Five to six leaves unfolded: inflorescence clearly visible
PHENOLOGICAL STAGES: Inflorescence fully developed: flowers separating
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: January 11, 2013

Inflorescence fully developed: flowers separating
PHENOLOGICAL STAGES: Beginning of flowering: first caps falling
Edith Byrne, Association Program Educator I
Lake Erie Regional Grape Program
Last Modified: January 10, 2013

Beginning of flowering: first caps falling
Upcoming Events
LERGP Coffee Pot Meeting #5

May 25, 2022
Silver Creek, NY
Come join us for discussion on pertinent and timely vineyard topics and issues. Enjoy good company, coffee and donuts!
LERGP Coffee Pot Meeting #6

June 1, 2022
Ripley, NY
Come join us for discussion on pertinent and timely vineyard topics and issues. Enjoy good company, coffee and donuts!
LERGP JUNE Virtual Evening Coffee Pot Meeting
June 8, 2022
Please come join the LERGP team for discussion on your vineyards. NY and PA pesticide credits have been applied for.
Announcements
Variable rate fruit thinning video on MyEV
https://www.efficientvineyard.com/blog/variable-rate-fruit-thinning-for-concord-crop-load-balanceAssess Your Freeze Damage
Assess Your Freeze Damage with a MyEV data Collector- By Terry BatesFreeze damage across eastern U.S. vineyards was highly variable this week depending on the stage of bud development, air temperatures, and vineyard location. Assessing bud damage over the next two weeks will help growers determine the size and variation in crop potential, adjust management practices, and record damage for crop insurance. In this video, Terry Bates shows you how to set up and use a MyEV data collector and a smartphone to collect and map freeze damage observations in your vineyard.
Recorded Coffee Pot Meetings
You may not be able to obtain Pesticide License Recertification points but you can gain plenty of valuable information by watching the coffee pot meetings if you missed them! We have had some special guest speakers sharing valuable information with us!Click the link below for access to all of the recorded LERGP Coffee Pot Meetings!
Recorded LERGP Coffee Pot Meetings
Hand sanitizer and Masks Still Available
Hand Sanitizer and Face Masks Still AvailableIt's not too late! If you haven't picked up your free NYS Clean hand sanitizer and washable Hanes masks, you still can. All farms in New York are eligible to request supplies. Click on this link to make the request. We will set up a time for you to come pick up the supplies at CLEREL in Portland.
LERGP Podcasts- check them out!
LERGP POD CASTSLoaner Sensor Program
The loaner sensor program will not be available this growing season in light of the COVID -19 protocols. We offer our sincere apologies
Your Trusted Source for Research-Based Knowledge
