Welcome to the first ever post of "Traveling through Wine and the World." My intention is to create a "Travel Log" were people I have come across can keep abreast of the events, trials, and tribulations that I experience. Also I am looking to keep open the lines of communication for ideas rather than keeping them stifled in the deep recesses of the masses.
Now on with the post.
Thursday (Yesterday) was, what I like to call, a reset moment in self commitment and desire. The local University of California Cooperative Extension's Oak Woodland Stewardship Program put together a workshop on Beneficial Species. The goal was to relay information from research and practical experience on the benefits and implementation of using Bees, Bats, and Birds for balancing the ecology of the vineyard and keeping pests (mostly insects, and small mammals) suppressed.
Gretchen Lebuhn from the San Francisco State University started off with the Buzz about Bees and the importance of keeping a large varied population of species. Different species come out at different times during the year from their loan hives in the ground to pollinate the local fauna. A varied population helps take over the slack if any one species is weakened. The largest benefit to vineyards is the bee's pollination of the flowering cover crops to increase the sustainability of the soil.
Some interesting facts about bees that was new to many people;
1. 4000 - 5000 species exist in the U.S.
2. 300 - 400 species exist in San Luis County
3. Honey bees are native to the Mediterranean, and are poor pollinators due to their "laziness."
4. Domestic bees typically live in the ground and because they need to visit more flowers to create adequate food supply are better pollinators.
One caveat is that the Honey bee is needed to pollinate tomatoes due to there "buzz" frequency of "c."
Note: Bees are not needed for grape pollination because grapes have a flower with no petals and depend primarily on wind transport for pollination.
The Birds and Bats portion presented by Emily Heaton from the University of California, Berkeley was based on Song bird populations and how they can be used as part of a sustainable farming program to reduce insect and small "varmint" populations. Of course when bringing up the subject of birds in a group of Vineyard managers, visions of angry mobs with noise cannons firing upon starlings come to mind. However; song birds are carnivorous, feeding on insect populations. Then of course there are the raptors and owls who will carry off small mammals such as voles, mice, and pocket gophers (perhaps a kitten when left unattended).
The important part of building these beneficial bird populations up is creating nest boxes that fit the lifestyle conditions and provide protection from predators. For more information on how to build a bird box (house) for any particular species go to; http://anrcatalog.ucdavis.edu/GrapesGrapeProducts/21636.aspx .
A vineyard tour with Mich from Halter Ranch Vineyards provided the group with incite on how to incorporate these sustainable practices into a full production style vineyard. This is when he is not leaping into the 5 acre pond for a quick swim. Large size vineyard management does not mean unpractical.
Other vineyard managers on hand talked about there practices and how it is working for them.
As time goes on I will continue to update this Blog with additional information pertaining to the subject of "Farming Green."
