Is
it the time to plough the fields and scatter?
No plough the fields and get rid of the
weeds! We don’t want them around as they steal all of the nutrients and water
that the vines could get, when they are already having to work very hard on our
steep, infertile slopes.
So
how do you get rid of the weeds?
Some growers manage weed control with weed-killer but ploughing is a much more organic and natural way of managing the
weeds. It is obviously takes a lot longer though.
In the old days the growers would of course
do the ploughing with a horse - but as we now have 12 hectares of old vines and
with a horse you need to go up and down each row 5 times (and what would we do
with a shire horse when it’s not ploughing) - that’s not a very practical or time-efficient solution.
Horses have been replaced by tractors but
these are old vines on steep slopes we are talking about, so we can’t just
bring a modern tractor in
- slopes are too steep and
vines too close together. A tractor just wouldn’t be able to get down the
rows.
But we did want to do the ploughing
properly and so we have bought a small little slim line tractor - a Chenillard - from the French for ‘Caterpillar’! Basically, it's a little tank with
caterpillar wheels that can fit between the narrow rows of vines and reach the parts a normal tractor
can’t! Also it can go up the
slopes, it’s small and sturdy and won’t tip easily – according to Jean Marc!!. But in actual fact the only time that
Jean Marc has tipped a Chenillard was on the flat!! So I can’t wait to get out
in the vineyards and start ploughing!
But hold your horses ……it’s not that
straight forward.
 |
| Hold your horses, Jones |
A lot of old vineyards haven’t been
ploughed in over 50 years. Because of this the roots often go across as well as
down - so you can’t just go in and plough as you would cut the surface roots
and the vines will die. This year
we have just ploughed on one side of each row of vines and next year we will
plough both sides.
 |
| Ploughing on one side only this year |
So
that must be a hard day’s work for you?
Actually Jean-Marc has done the first stint! But yes I am keen to have a go with my
new birthday present soon! Jean
Marc doesn’t seem to be sharing my
enthusiasm!!
Jean Marc used a chenillard in the vines
when he first started at the age of about 15 and before he had enough money to
buy a tractor. So he has all the
experience needed to teach a novice like me!!
So
have you had our first lesson yet?
No not yet! I definitely need a test drive.
It looks fun but there’s no steering wheel. So watch out for the first instalment
of ‘Tractor Cam’ – coming soon!
 |
| Jean Marc has allowed me to sit on it in the carpark |
Posts
