We believe the perfect environment for the life of all plants and animals is found in the forest.
In our vineyards the grapevines live in symbiosis with herbs, microorganisms, and animals all present. Grapevines have been cultivated in this fashion for thousands of years.
In order to care for each plan we must first respect everything that surrounds it. We believe in allowing a completely natural cover crop without any mowing which allows for many varieties of plants to coexist.
When a farmer decides to mow he or she is selecting specific families of herbs to be allowed to grow, usually grass, which are more resistant and less competitive with the vine. We believe that during springtime the vineyard should become a garden filled with flowers and hundreds of different species of plants living in equilibrium with each other. We do not fertilize the ground because we do not want lazy plants with roots that sit only on the surface. We need hearty strains of plants which have root systems that grow several meters deep. In fact, grass is a wonderful help because it competes with the vine in the first meter of soil which then stimulates the roots of the vine to search deeper into the earth. We use copper and sulfur to treat fungal diseases just as our ancestors have done before us.
