It seems to obvious to me as I walk through the vineyards above the house. It’s easy for me to spot which vineyards are healthy and which are not.
But can you? Would you know the difference if you were to look around you?
Yesterday I was walking through the Vouvray vineyards above the house and took these 2 pictures. I admit that it shows 2 extremes but would you have known the difference?
The picture above is of a healthy vineyard. How can you tell? It has lots of lush green grass and there are hundres of tiny wild flowers pushing through in the spring sunshine. It’s likely that this vineyard has been sown with a seed mix to provide a mixture of flowers and plants that add nitrogen and nutrients to the soil as well as provide a natural habitat for insects.
This second picture was taken on the same day during the same walk. The vines have also been neatly pruned in preparation for the season but there is a mass of tall dead grass that has likely been sprayed off killing anything living.
Both parcels will of course still provide grapes. I know which ones I want to go into the wine that I drink.
