Building a successful San Diego vineyard seems like a great idea… doesn’t it? But it may not be quite as simple as you think. Of course the climate is conducive to grape growing, but it takes a lot of work and patience to get the best out of your crops. Many San Diego vineyards have been established for some considerable time and they no longer have to worry about what kinds of grapes to grow and whether they will require a lot of hard work, nurturing and tending. They have gathered the required experience over the years, but let’s consider for a moment some of the hurdles they have had to overcome.
Position
One of the first considerations for a vineyard is the location as well as the position. There are so many things that affect the growth of grapes that you need to get all elements combined perfectly to get the best from your crops. The amount of sun available to the plants is an essential component to consider and the overall climate needs to be considered too. San Diego vineyards luckily have a very temperate climate all year round and the area is not plagued by harsh winters or springs. Many San Diego vineyards have south facing crops planted on a slope, which allows the optimum amount of sunshine to favor them.
Soil & moisture
The soil in which you plant your grapes is very important, as this will determine the kind of grapes you can plant. In addition, the plants need to have access to a good amount of water to ensure they grow to their ultimate best.
Inspection
The crops will have to be regularly inspected to ensure there is no rot of fungus affecting the crops. In addition, any dead or diseased plants needs to been removed quickly before they can infect other plants around them. Consideration is given at the time of planting to ensure the right amount of room is available for each vine. However, this also means close proximity to other vines, which is excellent access for disease or fungus too, as well as giving a larger yield of wine producing crop. It may also be necessary to spray the crops and in times of drought enough water should be available to irrigate the crops.
All of these and more are required for San Diego vineyards to be successful. You will not see the toil and care that goes into producing the best grapes, and if the vineyards have done their job well, all you will see on a wine tasting tour is happy crops of abundant grapes. This means the growers have got all the elements consistently right and have a good regime in progress.
Some of the tours may be happy to talk about some of the difficulties or negative aspects of growing grapes, and this will appeal to those interested in the agricultural side as well as the wine making side of the operation. Always ask questions on your tour, as usually your tour guide will be happy to explain in depth as much as they can about their passion and their San Diego vineyards.
