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October 2, 2015 CapitalPress.com 7 Thirty-year grower Chris Deckelman talks about the ins and outs of wine grape production. Deckelman, owner of Meridian Es- tate Vineyard and Vitis Ridge Winery, manages a total of 250-280 acres in the Silverton, Ore., area. Brenna Wiegand/For the Capital Press Tim, Pierre and Pete Paradis operate Paradis Vineyard near Silverton, Ore. The 60-acre vineyard is leased by Adelsheim Winery in Newberg. Vineyards need to be ‘tucked in’ for winter By BRENNA WIEGAND For the Capital Press It’s all about the vines, Willamette Valley vineyard operators say. “To ensure a great spring in the vineyard it’s import- ant to have good vine health through the growing season,” Pete Paradis of Paradis Vine- yard in Silverton, Ore., said. “This year water has been a critical issue and we have uti- lized our drip irrigation sys- tem more than ever before.” Next is vine nutrition. The soil is monitored annually and a nutrient balance is achieved by adding recommended amounts of custom-blended fertilizer. Vine petiole anal- ysis is commonly done to determine the vine’s nutrient uptake. “Third and likely the most important thing is using fun- gicides to protect the vines from ever-persistent disease pressure,” Paradis said. “In the vineyard industry there’s not a lot of getting win- ter prepared,” Chris Deckel- man, of Meridian Estate Vine- yard & Vitis Ridge Winery in Silverton, said. Including his own 100, Deckelman manages 250-280 acres of wine grapes in the Silverton area. “When you’re all through picking — it can be the end of October some years — you wait until the plants go com- pletely dormant, normally around Dec. 1-15, and then you start pruning and training again. It’s a labor thing, too; you’re trying to keep your la- bor force active 12 months of the year.” For Phil Kramer of Alexeli Vineyard & Winery, the ad- ditional task of making wine means no off season. “Right when I’m done making wine, I need to bottle the vintage from a year ago,” he said. “As soon as I’m done bottling I have to prune the vineyard and then finish the wine from the current vin- tage.” After that the growing sea- son’s on its way and Kram- er’s running the tasting room and continually distributing his wine. “You can’t leave home in the summer because you have to spray every two weeks and I have labor doing work. ... It’s at least 10 hours a day generally and there are a lot of long days.” The vines have done their work, too. “After harvest the vines are tired; you would be too if you had to do what they do,” Paradis said. “We like to say they go to sleep after a cold spell in November. They have worked hard and we have tak- en care of them well. It’s time to rest. “If we have done our job well they will rest well, allow us to trim their branches and arise renewed and ready for the next year.” Last year Adelsheim Win- ery of Newberg, Ore., began leasing Pete and Donna Par- adis’ entire 60-acre vineyard. Though their son Pierre still acts as field manager, he’s been focusing more on his off-site equipment contract- ing, Rainbow Valley Enter- prises. “Appropriate Technology for Agriculture” 2730 Garvin Ave., Richmond, CA 94804 • (530) 846-6401 • c (530) 632-4384 Walking Tractors Tractors Spaders FROM 8 TO 10.5 HP 31 TO 100 HP 30” TO 162” Flail Mowers FROM LOW-PROFILE TO STANDARD HEIGHT GEARBOXES Compost Spreaders Tiller FOR ALL SCALES OF FARMING WORKS THE HARDEST GROUND BUT CREATES NO WORK PAN. Other Tools for all Scales of Organic Agriculture WSG15-2/#18