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The Men and Women who craft CHÂTEAU ARGADENS
Training at Château Argadens
A large part of the vineyard team of Château Argadens and Château Daviaud followed for 2 days a training on physiological pruning of the vine (photo1, Jérôme, Nicolas, Franck, Benoît from left to right, and Fabien behind the camera!) The goal of this training is the technical mastery of a method of pruning and work that respects the physiology of the vine and makes it possible to perpetuate the plot by increasing its resilience, its productivity and the quality of the grapes. A great program.
The two studious mornings allowed everyone to refresh and complete their knowledge (pruning objective, vegetative cycle, sap flow, anatomy, adapting to every vine and the danger of bad pruning cuts) and to discover a new vocabulary related to pruning (seal, cambium, storage, wound cover ...)
The two afternoons were devoted to practice.
- dissection of several vines (photo 2) with immediate observation of the damage caused by conventional pruning: the sap only circulates in the small white parts, the rest (brown wood) is dead.
- discussion around these different cases and putting to practice the morning lessons.
- practical work: armed with their pruning shears, everyone applied their new knowledge under the watchful eye of the 3 trainers.
A rich educational course that will revolutionize the practice of pruning and habits at Château Argadens and Château Daviaud. The 5 participants are now convinced of the need to modify the pruning system in order to avoid weakening the vines, to improve their resistance against diseases and to work even more in harmony with our environment and our terroir.