March is the month of the vegetative awakening of the vine. In this period, after pruning, the vines are folded and tied to prepare them for the new season.

Bending the vine means pushing down with a movement that forms an arch, the “fruit head.” It is the year-old branch that has not been pruned. That will guarantee a quality production in the current year.

After this operation, the same garment is fixed through the ligature. It is a matter of gently twisting the branch that will give rise to the fruit, tying it to the wire placed horizontally between the vineyards. It is a job that is done strictly by hand, and you have to be very careful not to break the curved shoots.

In the past, ties of vegetable origin were used, obtained from willow, harvested in winter, stored in cool environments, and immersed in water before use to increase its elasticity. Now they have been supplanted by metal and plastic ties.

So as not to damage the vine buds, the tying must take place before the start of budding and is intended to make the vegetative development of the shoots uniform and make the grapes’ production balanced.

The new season for the vine begins towards the end of March, close to the budding. That happens with the phenomenon of “crying.” The vine loses drops of lymph at the level of pruning cuts, mainly due to the reactivation of the root activity of the vine.

This phenomenon marks that life flows inside the vineyard, and it will soon begin to produce its fruits.

Azienda Agricola Drusian Francesco – Via Anche, 1 – 31049 Bigolino di Valdobbiadene (TV)