October 2000

October 2000
[ Home ] [ Up ] [ Deutsch ] [ Contact Us ]

The Spring has sprung

October in South Africa heralds the start of the new year - spring. Everything is stirring, hatching, growing as the eternal circle of life kicks off once more.

Our vines are reaching for the sky, well that's a bit of an exaggeration, they are reaching the first cordon wire about 80 cm above the ground. The shiraz showed its characteristic youthful exuberance and reached the cordon first. Soon selection of the strongest shoots will take place. The cabernet is taking its own time, maybe disdainful of its precocious cousin.

To reinforce its arrival Spring came armed with a gale force wind that lasted several days. The straw mulch is the vineyard was blown all over the place, but the little vines were too small to be affected. We are glad we have planted so many windbreaks throughout the vineyard. The little saplings have just got a taste of what is to come.

The other nightmare that any farmer in the Cape worries about is brush fire. We were sent a warning letter from the authorities stating that all farms should be prepared. Firebreaks are compulsory. Last year many vineyards were devastated in the Stellenbosch area by the rampaging fires. One fire, started by an overhead electricity cable that was felled in a gale, swept through the Tulbagh valley from end to end burning a strip 3km wide.

Manie, the ever resourceful chap, has devised a fire plan.

We were having a lot of trouble with buck amongst the vines eating the choice leaves, especially at night . Why they come onto our farm when we border 1000 sq km of natural reserve is beyond me. Maybe they are curious as to the goings on next to their patch. We love to see them on our occasional dusk "game drives" up to the foothills on the eastern end of the farm but we don't want them eating our vines. Manie put up a large electric fence around the whole vine block to keep them out with stout posts every 30 metres. Good enough for the buck but what about the baboons - Manie says he will lay a minefield for them.

He is putting a high pressure brass spray nozzle on top of each of the posts supporting the electric fence. The idea is that before fire reaches our vineyard the water will be turned on and it will soak the vineyard border in a 5 metre strip running around the perimeter. We can also use the vineyard blower, which can carry 250 litres of water, to spray a fine mist as it is towed behind the vineyard tractor, soaking any area of ground threatened by approaching fire. I have every faith in Manie's plans but I hope they never have to be tested in extremis.

The main jobs in the vineyard at the moment are putting the straw mulch back where it should be after the gales, and weeding. As Manie keeps reminding us, farming without weed killer is a killer.

The other major job at the moment is preventing erosion of the dam wall. The prevailing South East wind creates choppy little waves which constantly break against the wall. This is causing erosion of the earth so the mammoth task of putting a boulder "beach" along the wall was started. All the rocks have to be manhandled from other parts of the farm and from our neighbours, a back breaking task. Mrs. M's visions of a beautiful sandy beach to sunbathe on have been dashed - she'll just have to make do with a swimming pool full of spring water. Anyway we think she was put off by the piles of baboon droppings, as this is their favourite gathering place in the evening.

[ Back ] [ Next ]

[ TMV...the birth! ] [ January 2000 ] [ February 2000 ] [ March 2000 ] [ April 2000 ] [ May 2000 ] [ June 2000 ] [ July 2000 ] [ August 2000 ] [ September 2000 ] [ October 2000 ] [ November 2000 ] [ December 2000 ] [ January 2001 ] [ February 2001 ] [ March 2001 ] [ April 2001 ] [ May 2001 ] [ June 2001 ] [ July 2001 ] [ August 2001 ] [ September 2001 ] [ October 2001 ] [ November 2001 ] [ December 2001 ] [ January 2002 ] [ February 2002 ] [ March 2002 ] [ April 2002 ] [ May 2002 ] [ June 2002 ] [ July 2002 ] [ August 2002 ] [ September 2002 ] [ October 2002 ] [ November 2002 ] [ December 2002 ] [ January 2003 ] [ February 2003 ] [ March 2003 ] [ April 2003 ] [ May 2003 ] [ June 2003 ] [ July 2003 ] [ August 2003 ] [ September 2003 ] [ October 2003 ] [ November 2003 ] [ December 2003 ] [ January 2004 ] [ February 2004 ] [ March 2004 ] [ April 2004 ] [ May 2004 ] [ June 2004 ] [ July 2004 ] [ August 2004 ] [ September 2004 ] [ October 2004 ] [ November 2004 ] [ December 2004 ]

Home Page Tulbagh Wine Tulbagh Visitor's Info Where to Stay Where to Eat Tulbagh Real Estate Event Planning Activities Tulbagh Trade Tulbagh Mountain Vineyards

Tulbagh Information Tel: +27 (0) 23 230 1348/230 1375 email: tulbagh information