The sun has finally made an entrance after 6 weeks of stormy wet weather and huge amounts of rain. Growers are relieved but also worried about the levels of downy mildew in the vineyards. The constant rain during May made it very difficult for growers to get onto their vineyards and treat and so there is some mildew in the forming bunches. Soils are also looking a bit compact after running machinery over them while still very wet and muddy.
downy mildew on the leaves
downy mildew on the underside of the leaf
It looks like we are in for a sunny spell with high temperatures this week so things will push fast. Vines have been tucked in and some have been topped (the apex of the vines trimmed to limit the canopy height).
