While most of the agricultural part of the US is in ruins from all of the flooding, Greg Shipp, a local wine producer expects to have a record year of production. His grapes are taking advantage of all the excess water that northeastern Kansas has received this year.
The above average amount of rainfall this June has given grapes the moisture they need to thrive. If the flooding stops soon then the word bumper crop will into play.
“We need the moisture up front and then dry weather in August and September,” Shipp said.
The amount of moisture is perfect at the moment, but some farmers fear the threat of mold growing or severe weather if we receive too much rain. If things begin to dry out for the summer it looks like it will be a great year for wine production.
“The grapes are growing faster and faster,” said Dave Karnes a Topeka, KS grape farmer, “from the looks of it, it’s a bumper crop”
If the grapes do receive more moisture then farmers need to worry about mold growing on the plants. Once the temperature starts to rise for the summer, the grapes become vulnerable to more diseases. Farmers struggle with being able to treat the plants because the ground is so wet they can’t effectively treat the vines. So far, they haven’t had enough trouble to make a difference.
Michelle Meyer, of Holyfield vineyards said her grapes need to dry out once they get the initial burst of rain. As long as it doesn’t get too hot this summer, then her grapes will grow very well. Since the season has had a later start than usual the added rainfall has helped the grapes to catch up to a normal level of production.
When grapes receive a large amount of water they have the ability to grow and produce more sugar. This increased about of sugar allows them to sustain development through the summer. The more flavorful the grapes are, then the more flavorful the wines are. Simply put, better grapes make better wine.
Another problem that farmers have faced in beginning the grape cultivation this year is the increased amount of severe weather. The grapes vines are strung on a wire grid and when the storms are producing severe lightening several times a week then the growers can’t work out in the fields. This is another reason why the season was off to a slow start.
Hail and severe weather are significant risk factors to farmers who can loose much of their income in a single storm, or just fall behind in production. Karnes protects his grapes from hail damage by covering them with mesh netting. This helps to reduce the impact of the hail by distributing the shock over a larger area.
“Our grapes are strung on a wire trellis system. We can’t have people out in the fields if there is a chance for lightning,” said Meyer.
According to local meteorologists, it appears that the wet season is quickly coming to an end. This is related to a region of high pressure, a blocking high, that helps to prevent prolonged rain events from weather systems. When the high pressure sets into place it usually means that clear and dry skies are in store. That is exactly what the farmers need in order to produce a record harvest.
“It looks like the high pressure is getting ready to set up for the summer,” said Meteorologist Bryan Busby of KMBC-TV.
The high pressure isn’t always good for the grapes. The systems provides for long periods of surface temperature warm-ups. If the temperatures reach values above 100 degrees the grape vine will stop producing sugar. This can be detrimental to the plant if it does get a chance to cool.
The temperature of the grapes can have a great effect on the wine production. Colder temperatures prevent the grapes from ripening and heat can alter the crop yield as well.
“When it gets really hot the plant shuts down. The wine just isn’t as good,” said Shipp.
Last year the grape growers took a big hit to their crops with the late April freeze. Many vines were killed by that weather event, and it was not a good year for grapes or Kansas Wines. With the added rain fall and the slow temperature rise this year, the grapes look like they can shed some light on this cloudy flood season.