The second-annual Hill Country Vineyard Field Day on May 23 will be presented by the Texas AgriLife Extension Service and hosted by Flat Creek Estate Vineyard and Winery near Marble Falls. (Texas AgriLife Extension Service)
MARBLE FALLS — The second-annual Hill Country Vineyard Field Day, presented by the Texas AgriLife Extension Service and hosted by Flat Creek Estate Vineyard and Winery, will be from 9 a.m-4 p.m. on May 23.
The winery is located at 24912 Singleton Bend East Road near Marble Falls.
The theme for the field day is “Protecting Your Crop,” said Penny Adams, AgriLife Extension Hill Country viticulture adviser and field day coordinator.
“In addition to getting useful research-based information on vineyard management, attendees will get to see demonstrations of some state-of-the-art equipment that may be used to improve their operations and their bottom line,” Adams said.
Static and hands-on demonstrations as well as discussions will cover topics on bird abatement methods, including falconry, crop protection, micronized application of herbicides, canopy management strategies, identification and ongoing research of cotton root rot, installation of vineyard posts using a power driver, use of quick–hitch systems and irrigation monitoring.
“There will also be vineyard supply and equipment company representatives on hand to talk with participants and answer questions about their products,” Adams said.
She said demonstrations and/or equipment at the field day will be provided by Bubco/Mustang Equipment, Crop Production Services, DOW Chemical, Gripple Inc., Power Post Driver, Producers Supply, Texana Irrigation, Texas Vineyard Supply, Tommy John Industries, Town Lake Construction and Winfield Solutions.
Adams noted that Dr. Dave Appel, an AgriLife Extension plant pathologist from College Station, will be speaking at the field day on cotton root rot and will demonstrate the use of an air-spade as a tool for vineyard root-system demonstrations.
“It blasts soils away from the root system of the grapevines so participants can observe the intact structure of the root system,” Appel said. “This provides a nice visual for comparing things like root stocks and seeing the influence of disease on a root system. It’s a lot faster and less trouble than digging around the root system, plus it doesn’t damage the system.”
Registration is $25 and includes lunch in the vineyard sponsored by Winfield Solutions and served by the Flat Creek Winery’s chef. There also will be a bring-your-own wine reception following the program; bring wines from your vineyard to share.
Registration can be completed online by going to http://agrilifevents.tamu.edu and by entering the keyword “vineyard” into the search field or by calling 979-845-2604. Registration and payment also will be accepted at the door, with checks made payable to: Texas AgriLife Extension Service.
For more information, contact Adams at 830-997-7047 or psadams@ag.tamu.edu.
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