VINE RECOVERY FROM FROST DAMAGE

Personal Observations from the Historic Frost of June 4, 2018

Extent At between 4 and 6 am June 4th 2018 the temperature dropped to -2 to -3 C in Upper Falmouth, Nova Scotia. There was adequate warning from the various weather apps, but the most accurate one was “The Weather Channel” (-1C predicted). The most inaccurate one was “AccuWeather” (+2C predicted). By mid morning it […]

A beautiful winter day at Johnston Vineyards

Winter 2017/18

SUMMARY The winter of 2017/18 was a benign affair. The maximum low temperature at Falmouth was -17 degrees C. There was very little snowfall and pruning could be done most days throughout the winter. Consequently 2 workers were able to prune and tie down 21 acres of vines. Eleven additional acres were new plantings with […]

2017 Summer and Fall

Summer and Fall 2017 at Johnston Vineyards Summary The weather was ideal for new vines planted in 2017 at Johnston Vineyards. The last 9 acres of grapevines were planted this spring for a total of 31 acres over the past 3 years. The weather was also favorable for the grape crop with lots of sun […]

Spring Finally Arrives at Johnston Vineyards

Spring Finally Arrives at Johnston Vineyards

  Late afternoon sun in early spring 2017. Martock ski area is in the background Two year old Petite Pearl not pruned on the left and pruned but not tied down on the right Pruning Pruning must finish before the buds swell too much as the risk of injury to the buds is increased. Marquette, […]

The Winter Vineyard

The Winter Vineyard

Winter Pruning Cold hardy vine pruning commenced in late December at Johnston Vineyards and continued fairly steadily until early March when pruning of the vinifera vines began. This just finished up in early May. The rationale of pruning the vinifera later is that any late damage to the more susceptible vines would be detected and […]

New Net Winder at Johnston Vineyards

New Net Winder at Johnston Vineyards

A new bird net winder to wind up and store bird netting mounted on the sides of the vines has been built for Johnston Vineyards. It has an easily accessible external handle to control speed and direction removing the need for an operator to sit in the tractor cab. There are 6 bars to thread the […]

The Winter Vineyard

First Experience With Artos C Trellis Line Poles and EP1 End Poles

  Artos Trellis System Johnston Vineyard’s first Artos trellis (manufactured in Germany and available from Shemogue Custom & Trellis Inc, NB) was installed in 2015 by Bob’s Fencing & Grape Field Trellis System, Canaan, NS (Artos information). An additional 7 acres was installed in 2016. The C line poles are made from galvanized steel with […]

Fall 2016 Update at Johnston Vineyards

Fall 2016 Update at Johnston Vineyards

  Overveiw 2016 was a great year for growing grapes. It was dry with the occasional light rain which limited fungal diseases of the vines and grapes and resulted in smaller grapes but more concentrated flavors. Fall stretched on into November without a hard frost so the grapes had extra time to ripen. the weather […]