Seeing is believing, and every photographer has a unique perspective. Each time one of our contributing photographers goes into the field, another one-of-a-kind part of the grape growing season is captured by the camera. Here, you’ll find full visual documentation from spring to fall of all things vineyard, including a wide range of cover crops, beneficials, and all the other elements that contribute to growing the highest quality grapes in Santa Barbara County.
When are weeds not weeds? When they enhance the growing environment for wine grapes.
Grape farmers have many options when it comes to selecting cover crops and each contributes differently to grape production. While the common mallow is not the first choice for a springtime vase filled with flowers and is often considered a weed, for the wine grape farmer, it is a welcome addition to the cover crop arsenal.
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Fava beans are beautiful, edible, and beneficial legumes that most vineyards include among their many cover crops. The plant makes many important contributions to the health of a vineyard, but, most importantly, it improves the quality of the soil by adding more nitrogen.
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Those pretty little daisy-like wildflowers you see among the vines are there for more than appearances. You may be familiar with chamomile in its most popular form: tea.
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Sweet peas are edible little gems that brighten vineyard rows and provide considerable benefits to grape vines. Their charming little flowers come in many colors, and aside from being attractive, they are an extremely valuable vineyard cover crop.