Weather
-
Great to see some of you at the West Georgia winegrape symposium today! For those who missed it, here is a summary of what I am expecting for climate conditions this summer and fall. One month ago, dry conditions across Georgia were hampering the best efforts of producers to get their crops in and see…
Posted in: Weather -
I think only Grateful Dead fans will understand the unworthy attempt at being funny in the title… sorry. But it has been a long, strange pre-bloom / bloom period in Georgia vineyards, and perhaps throughout other grape growing regions in the southeastern US. Most bunch grape vineyards in Georgia are well into bloom or early…
-
I have unfortunately received many recent calls about frost issues in vineyards. For the third time, I am going to post the extension pub that is currently in editorial phase before it will be officially published through UGA Extension. That bulletin should cover what I’ll say here in brief. Vineyard Frost Protection Extension Bulletin_blog share…
-
All: We are seeing some bud break, and as much as 1.5 inch growth, out there in early-breaking cultivars (Chardonnay, Merlot) across Cleveland and Dahlonega. This is perhaps also true in Blanc du Bois in Bremen / Carrolton area as well as the southern region. I am also hearing reports of some bud swell occurring…
-
In the last blog post, Mark Hoffman described a place to get hourly weather forecasts for up to six days for a number of stations at airports around the Southeast. But if you don’t live near an airport, you might prefer to get information that is closer to your farm. Here is a way to…
Posted in: Weather -
Atlas Obscura is one of my favorite blogs because it provides a lot of information on bits of geography and history that I would not otherwise hear about. Here is a long and interesting story about how two Italian viticulturists worked together to bring Vitis vinifera to Virginia, following the failed experiment of Thomas Jefferson. As you…
Posted in: Weather -
I am hearing reports of 10-15% bud break in early-breaking cultivars such as Chardonnay and Merlot planted across Cleveland and Dahlonega. Perhaps this is also occurring in Blanc du Bois is west Georgia, and in Chardonel at lower elevations. Buds may still be either at the dormant bud or bud swell stage at higher elevations…
-
In spite of what seemed like very cold temperatures over the winter, the April-like temperatures we experienced across the Southeast in February have left us well above normal in temperature for the year so far. February 2018 was the warmest February on record for Georgia and all of the Southeastern states. Precipitation has been less…
Posted in: Weather -
I’ve been asked by a number of people what are our chances for getting a frost in the next couple of weeks after this tremendously warm weather we’ve been experiencing. I think that for the southern 2/3 of Georgia, we may have already seen our last frost of the year, but I do expect to…
Posted in: Weather -
I have received calls/concerns about adjusting pruning practice based on the warm weather patterns we are currently experiencing. The questions really being asked are “when should I final prune?” and “should I delay prune?” given the high potential for yet another relatively early bud break this year. –When to make the final prune (“final prune”…