Spring in the Vineyard

It is fabulous that spring is finally here – the season of transformations and new beginnings. The sun and the increasing warm weather has resulted in the vines growing quickly and looking amazing. The downside has been the low rainfall over winter, which has Steve and many others concerned for the coming summer.

The first sign of spring in the vineyard is budburst. This is where the vines that have been dormant over winter come back to life and start to produce buds and leaves. Budburst usually occurs in September, the exact timing is influenced by the increasing hours of sunlight, as well as the air and soil temperature.

At the moment, the grapevines are developing inflorescences, these are the cluster of flowers that will eventually develop into grapes. The inflorescences are still immature and will continue to mature into November when flowering takes place. Flowering is a crucial stage and indicates that the vine is beginning fruit production. The weather at this stage is vital – rain, strong wind, or cool temperatures can be problematic and disrupt the process. The success at flowering has a direct result on the crop for 2026, not simply the volume of fruit produced, but also ensuring balanced bunches that ripen evenly. The ideal conditions for flowering are warm temperatures (both air and soil), little wind and no rain.