Sustainable Winegrowing

Biological control is emerging as one of the most promising tools against spotted lanternfly. Anne Johnson, postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Entomology at Michigan State University, explains how spotted lanternfly damages grapevines by draining plant sap and producing honeydew that fuels sooty mold.

She shares new research showing that North American predators, including spiders, praying mantises, and birds, are already helping keep this invasive pest in check. Learn which biological control strategies show the most promise, why removing tree of heaven matters, and how community science is accelerating discoveries for sustainable spotted lanternfly management.

Resources:

• 96: Spotted Lanternfly - Threat to California
• 175: How to Prepare for Invasive Pests in Your Vineyard
• 289: How Spotted Lanternfly Puts Grapes at Risk—and What Growers Can Do
• Allies Against an Invasive: Interactions Between Spotted Lanternflies and Native Species (Seminar)
• Anne Johnson | Google Scholar
• Anne Johnson | Michigan State University
• Birds Biting Bad Bugs | Facebook
• Natural insect predators may serve as allies in spotted lanternfly battle
• Predation of spotted lanternfly (Lycorma delicatula) by generalist arthropod predators in North America
• Spotted Lanternfly Management Guide
• Spotted lanternfly may use 'toxic shield' to fend off bir predators

Support the Podcast:

• Make a Donation

Vineyard Team Programs:

• Juan Nevarez Memorial Scholarship - Help students from vineyard families pursue higher education
• Online Courses - Earn DPR and CCA hours with expert-led sustainability trainings
• SIP Certified - A trusted third-party certification proving your sustainable practices with science-backed standards
• Sustainable Ag Expo - Join top experts at the premier winegrowing event of the year
• Vineyard Team Membership - Connect with a community advancing sustainable winegrowing

Boost your social media marketing without creating more content. Discover four simple strategies to improve SEO, help the right audience find your posts, increase saves and shares, build authentic connections, and repurpose content to maximize your reach.

Resources:

• Apply for SIP Certified Wine
• Join the SIP Certified Wine Finder (Members Only)
• Marketing Tips eNewsletter
• Real Stories, Real Impact
• SIP Certified Marketing Toolkit
• Tell Your Sustainable Story Online Course

Support the Podcast:

• Make a Donation

Vineyard Team Programs:

• Juan Nevarez Memorial Scholarship - Help students from vineyard families pursue higher education
• Online Courses - Earn DPR and CCA hours with expert-led sustainability trainings
• SIP Certified - A trusted third-party certification proving your sustainable practices with science-backed standards
• Sustainable Ag Expo - Join top experts at the premier winegrowing event of the year
• Vineyard Team Membership - Connect with a community advancing sustainable winegrowing

Choosing the right grapevine rootstock can improve drought resilience without sacrificing yield. Patty Skinkis, Viticulture Extension Specialist and Professor in the Horticulture Department at Oregon State University, shares findings from long-term Oregon rootstock trial comparing mature and young vineyards.

Learn which rootstocks produced larger canopies and higher yields with less water stress, why traditional low-vigor choices may struggle in no-till systems, and how this research is shaping an updated guide to help growers select rootstocks for climate resilience, vineyard establishment, and future production.

Resources:

• 281: How Rootstock Impacts Vine Drought Tolerance and Longevity
• Evaluating Drought-Tolerant Rootstocks in Cool Climate Wine Grapes for Climate Change Resilience
• Patricia Skinkis | Google Scholar
• Patricia Skinkis | Instagram
• Patricia Skinkis | LinkedIn
• Patricia Skinkis | Oregon State University
• Patricia Skinkis | Research Gate
• Rootstock drought tolerance under dry-farmed conditions in Oregon's Willamette Valley
• Rootstock effects on mature Pinot noir growth and productivity under cool climate, dry farmed conditions

Support the Podcast:

• Make a Donation

Vineyard Team Programs:

• Juan Nevarez Memorial Scholarship - Help students from vineyard families pursue higher education
• Online Courses - Earn DPR and CCA hours with expert-led sustainability trainings
• SIP Certified - A trusted third-party certification proving your sustainable practices with science-backed standards
• Sustainable Ag Expo - Join top experts at the premier winegrowing event of the year
• Vineyard Team Membership - Connect with a community advancing sustainable winegrowing

While Santa Barbara's Foxen Canyon area is known for its natural beauty, reliable cell service is not one of its amenities.

Read More.

Many winegrape growers don't realize that grapevine roots are constantly growing, dying, and regenerating throughout the season. In this episode, David Eissenstat, Professor Emeritus at Penn State University, explains how decades of root research have challenged the myth that roots only grow at bloom and after harvest.

He shares how underground research techniques reveal the hidden life of grapevine roots, why young roots drive water and nutrient uptake, how root growth changes with temperature and moisture, and what growers should know about managing vineyards with a deeper understanding of root biology.

Resources:

• 281: How Rootstock Impacts Vine Drought Tolerance and Longevity
• Crop load – physiology, modelling and relationships to root growth in grapevines
• David Eissenstat
• Importance of internal hydraulic redistribution for prolonging the lifespan of roots in dry soil
• The Efficiency of Nutrient Acquisition over the Life of a Root

Support the Podcast:

• Make a Donation

Vineyard Team Programs:

• Juan Nevarez Memorial Scholarship - Help students from vineyard families pursue higher education
• Online Courses - Earn DPR and CCA hours with expert-led sustainability trainings
• SIP Certified - A trusted third-party certification proving your sustainable practices with science-backed standards
• Sustainable Ag Expo - Join top experts at the premier winegrowing event of the year
• Vineyard Team Membership - Connect with a community advancing sustainable winegrowing

Think print is a thing of the past? Think again. Discover why print remains a powerful marketing tool for wineries, offering lasting impressions, stronger recall, and a personal touch that digital channels can't always match. Learn how to make your print materials work smarter and more sustainably.

Resources:

• Apply for SIP Certified Wine
• Marketing Tips eNewsletter
• Real Stories, Real Impact
• SIP Certified Marketing Toolkit
• Tell Your Sustainable Story Online Course

Support the Podcast:

• Make a Donation

Vineyard Team Programs:

• Juan Nevarez Memorial Scholarship - Help students from vineyard families pursue higher education
• Online Courses - Earn DPR and CCA hours with expert-led sustainability trainings
• SIP Certified - A trusted third-party certification proving your sustainable practices with science-backed standards
• Sustainable Ag Expo - Join top experts at the premier winegrowing event of the year
• Vineyard Team Membership - Connect with a community advancing sustainable winegrowing

Three-cornered alfalfa hopper (TCAH) is the only confirmed insect vector of grapevine red blotch virus in Vitis vinifera, yet many growers first realize they have the pest only after spotting petiole girdling in the vineyard. Cindy Kron, North Coast IPM Advisor at UC ANR, shares findings from two years of weekly sweep-net monitoring at Oakville Research Station that revealed TCAH adults are present well before bud break, suggesting grapevines are not their preferred host.

She explains the insect's life stages, why legumes serve as key feeding and reproductive hosts, and why detecting early instars remains a major challenge for vineyard IPM. Cindy also discusses how degree-day models may help growers better time tillage to reduce TCAH populations and limit grapevine red blotch risk.

Resources:

• 71: New Techniques to Detect Grapevine Leafroll Disease
• 131: Virus Detection in Grapevines
• Can a pesky treehopper be foiled because its growth is regulated by temperature?
• Cindy Kron
• How to use a model for reduction of three-cornered alfalfa hopper in vineyards
• Identification of Nonhost Cover Crops of the Three-Cornered Alfalfa Hopper (Spissistilus festinus)
• Use of Ground Covers to Control Three-Cornered Alfalfa Hopper, Spissistilus festinus (Hemiptera: Membracidae), and Other Suspected Vectors of Grapevine Red Blotch Virus
• Weather Models and Degree Days

Support the Podcast:

• Make a Donation

Vineyard Team Programs:

• Juan Nevarez Memorial Scholarship - Help students from vineyard families pursue higher education
• Online Courses - Earn DPR and CCA hours with expert-led sustainability trainings
• SIP Certified - A trusted third-party certification proving your sustainable practices with science-backed standards
• Sustainable Ag Expo - Join top experts at the premier winegrowing event of the year
• Vineyard Team Membership - Connect with a community advancing sustainable winegrowing

Meet Gilbert the Pig and friends. These goats, sheep, and Kunekune pigs replaced herbicides and mowing with year-round weed control. And they're adorable.

Resources:

• Apply for SIP Certified Wine
• Marketing Tips eNewsletter
• Real Stories, Real Impact
• SIP Certified Marketing Toolkit
• Tell Your Sustainable Story Online Course

Support the Podcast:

• Make a Donation

Vineyard Team Programs:

• Juan Nevarez Memorial Scholarship - Help students from vineyard families pursue higher education
• Online Courses - Earn DPR and CCA hours with expert-led sustainability trainings
• SIP Certified - A trusted third-party certification proving your sustainable practices with science-backed standards
• Sustainable Ag Expo - Join top experts at the premier winegrowing event of the year
• Vineyard Team Membership - Connect with a community advancing sustainable winegrowing

Wine grape growers are turning to precision technology to mitigate bird damage while reducint labor and material costs. In this episode, Joseph Traut (Cypress AgTech) joins growers Chad Foster (Maverick Farming) and Paul Ramirez (Loma Escondida Farming) to share real-world experience using an autonomous, silent laser system that protects 20–30 vineyard acres per unit.

Learn how to optimize placement, program effective coverage patterns, and time use from mid-June through harvest. Hear which bird species are easiest to deter, where challenges remain, and how this approach supports sustainable, worker-safe vineyard management.

Resources:

• 6/10/2026 REGISTER: Technology Field Day Tailgate
• 272: 30 Gophers a Night: Why Barn Owls Belong in Your Vineyard
• Autonomous Bird Laser Deterrent (video)
• Cypress AgriTech | Sustainable Farming Technology | United States
• Joseph Traut, Vice President, Cypress AgriTech
• Maverick Farming
• Riley Boylan, President, Cypress AgriTech

Support the Podcast:

• Make a Donation

Vineyard Team Programs:

• Juan Nevarez Memorial Scholarship - Help students from vineyard families pursue higher education
• Online Courses - Earn DPR and CCA hours with expert-led sustainability trainings
• SIP Certified - A trusted third-party certification proving your sustainable practices with science-backed standards
• Sustainable Ag Expo - Join top experts at the premier winegrowing event of the year
• Vineyard Team Membership - Connect with a community advancing sustainable winegrowing

Two-thirds of consumers say sustainability matters when choosing what to buy. Learn how to equip your tasting room team with simple, authentic talking points that help guests connect with your values and turn every interaction into a memorable brand experience.

Resources:

• Apply for SIP Certified Wine
• Marketing Tips eNewsletter
• Real Stories, Real Impact
• SIP Certified Marketing Toolkit
• Tell Your Sustainable Story Online Course

Support the Podcast:

• Make a Donation

Vineyard Team Programs:

• Juan Nevarez Memorial Scholarship - Help students from vineyard families pursue higher education
• Online Courses - Earn DPR and CCA hours with expert-led sustainability trainings
• SIP Certified - A trusted third-party certification proving your sustainable practices with science-backed standards
• Sustainable Ag Expo - Join top experts at the premier winegrowing event of the year
• Vineyard Team Membership - Connect with a community advancing sustainable winegrowing