This grape shoot shows a vine actively growing as the tendrils are further out than the shoot tips and appear to be climbing. Numerous tools are available to help wine grape growers monitor plant water use and soil moisture and schedule irrigation. It’s not so much the specific tool that’s important, but knowing the vineyard soil, understanding vine response to water stress, and being in the vineyard. Jim McFerran, director of vineyards for Washington State’s Milbrandt Vineyard in Mattawa, believes that understanding the soils, and everything about them—from water-holding capacity and depth, to texture, stratification, and variability—is key to wine […]