Wolff Vineyard - Better Than Expected

A group of friends and family received a tour of Wolff Vineyards yesterday. A previous post of SLO Today gave only a taste of what Jean-Pierre Wolff Ph.D. has to say in person about his sustainable operation outside of San Luis Obispo. Ahead of time, we knew that work was taking place to recreate curves and ascending pools in the creeks on the property, and that a turtle refuge was also in place.

Our surprise and delight was learning the degree to which Dr. Wolff has labored on his 125 acres of grapes to promote sustainable wine. The care and thoughtfulness and planning were amazing to all of us. No traditional pesticides are used on the property but all kinds of care is taken to discourage them.

His vineyards are not watered except by rain, but he carefully plants red varietals on the slopes and has saved the thirty-five year old Chardonny vines on the flat by conserving and holding water and preventing it from running off into the creeks. For example, he has built up his roads throughout his property so they promote the retention of rain water in the water table. One of his first moves eleven years ago when he acquired the vineyard, was to cut the lateral roots 3 feet down to encourage deeper growth of taproots, and thus better survival of these vines in dryer years.

He composts at the ratio of 1.5 for the grape tonnage he harvests. Much of this is in the form of gypsum from recycled drywall, but he also plants lupines and other nitrogen fixing plants in between the rows of vines.



His pruning techniques are also an integral part of his sustainable methodology.

Many of our attendees yesterday were impressed enough to either buy wine or join the wine club. Our country is lucky to have such a dedicated environmentalist in our midst. I urge any of you with an interest in this subject to seek out his talks or tours in the future. For more on Dr. Wolff see this article.

Vanishing Bees

Above: Bees enjoying the male catkins on the white alder in my front yard - they come every December. I walk outdoors and hear them buzzing.

Lots of press in the last few years about the vanishing European honey bee from all over the planet. Lots of theories abound. Now a film shown in San Luis Obispo last night has a pretty plausible explanation.

Vanishing of the Bees starts with the beekeeper who first reported the phenomenon in about 2004 that has come, in this country, to be called Colony Collapse Disorder. David Hackenberg was a large-scale beekeeper since the 1960's, he trucked his bees all over the country from his place in Florida. He and beekeeper friends researched this disaster, and finally traveled to France, which experienced this bee collapse ten years ago.

No real American research to confirm their conclusion, or perhaps even authenticated research in France, but the French government prefers to err on the side of safety and withdrew certain systemic pesticides. The bees were back healthy in France a year after that measure was taken.

Why systemic pesticides? The film delights in showing us how DDT was touted and sprayed with abandon in earlier decades, but even this pesticide only stayed active a short time. The systemic even lingers in the soil, let alone the plants, and seem to disorient and confuse the bees over generations.

Why isn't the EPA taking action, doing research or something in this? Like the FDA, the EPA does no real research of it's own. It depends upon the research done by the companies who develop the products. On bees, the tests last for 5 days. If the product doesn't kill the bees in five days it is considered safe to sell. No research handles any long term effects or anything less than lethal dangers.

Where are systemics used? Monoculture crop farms covering thousands of acres of usually corn or soybeans use systemics to kill pests. Bees have to be trucked in to these farms. To survive in one place, bees need a diversity of plants that provide pollen and nectar except during the winter. They could never survive on these farms. Systemic pesticides were introduced in many of these monoculture farms in the early part of this century. After bees visit them, they seem to develop CCD about six months later.

View the trailer and find info on showings below.

Vanishing of the Bees Trailer

Sustainable Vineyard

Another SLO treasure discovered yesterday. KCBX, our local NPR gem, hosted an inspiring interview with Jean Pierre Wolff, the owner of Wolff Vineyards, located in Edna Valley outside San Luis Obispo. His work in sustainable agriculture is being featured in two documentaries, and he has been asked by UC Davis to help them develop a program for sustainable vineyards.

You can listen to the podcast, if you are intrigued by the summary below.

The vineyards contain Steel-head trout habitat. When Wolff purchased the property in 1999, he knew he wanted to preserve that. A major project has now been undertaken to reduce creek erosion, retrace original curves, provide resting pools for the fish, while at the same time conveniently allowing more water to seep into the aquifer.

Wolff vineyards, were planted with native grasses that might seem weedlike, but this was deliberate. Wolff is not interested in the golf course look, but in reducing erosion. He also releases beneficial insects and for fun retains a falconer for discouraging European Starlings.

A Pacific pond turtle refuge has been established on the property, currently providing habitat for twenty-seven orphaned turtles. His property also is inhabited by Red-legged frogs, which he enjoys where other vintners might be dismayed. He knows they are like the canary in the coal mine, since their presence demonstrates the health of the environment at Wolff.

When asked why he has undertaken all of this, he says that he believes in the 3Es of Sustainability: Economics, Environment, and Social Equity - down to the treatment of farm workers. Half the vineyard is dry. But the other half is aquifer dependent; thus the work on the health of the aquifer also aids the vineyard. If he prevents erosion of creeks by preventing sedimentation, the creek will not drive the aquifer deeper underground making the water less accessible to the vineyards.

Wolff Vineyards, a local business worth promoting, and maybe someday the competition will take note too.

SLO Today Now

Welcome to SLO TODAY!


There is a lot I would like to share about my love of San Luis Obispo County.

I plan to discuss California native plants, sustainability in gardening, buying local especially foods, and of course my favorite local non-profits which are: The San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden and Pacific Wildlife Care. My emphasis though may not be always local as I would like to share what I know and continue to learn about gardening.

I welcome comments if they are civil and thoughtful.

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