No need to tell you how expensive the vines are and there are so many different types of wine grapes.
Equally expensive is the clearing of the old vines, as they have to be ripped out with machines.
Imagine how difficult and time consuming it will be to clear this land with a gang of laborers using shovels, like in the old days. In the old days they did not have the modern machinery and any tractors, so animals were used to cart away the old vines. But these modern farmers have it all down pat and I will show you what they do. Nevertheless, it's a big job to clear a land like this and then to prepare it for the new plantings.
They have made some headway and were on the last few lines of this land.
So come and see.
He drops the bucket on to each vine stem and then simply rips it out.
Tractors with carts are loaded with the old vines to take them away.
Sorry for the haze, as I took this directly into the sun. Just wanted to show you the loading action.
They had two diggers in the field.
The rodent police were also present, as the work had stopped for lunch, and they were looking for any rats that were escaping.
Lunch time, and look how smart did they park those two diggers. Tongue to tongue.
Did I tell you that they used a few tractors?
And finally, this is the result. Mother earth is restored and will be prepared for the new vines.
I know that the land has to be rested for a time, but I do not yet know for how long and I also know that they change the seeds to maize or any other ground restorative plants in order to reinvigorate the ground before the next vine plantings. Some of the farmers have switched to canola, which leaves those brilliant yellow patches that one can see from a plane in the sky. The Mediterranean climate here is ideal for wine grape farming, and the fascinating thing is that just over the mountain the climate is totally changed to be suitable for apple farming.
I don't know where to find a community to place the farming posts in, so I thought that Silver Bloggers would be my best bet.
I hope you have enjoyed the pictures and the story.
And That's All Friends.
Photos by Zac Smith-All Rights Reserved.
Camera: Canon Powershot SX70HS Bridge camera.
