Pepinieriste wine

Plantation
Harvest
Planting can take place from November when the vine is dormant (fall leaves). By region, it can take until May especially in areas where there may be late frost. The alarm vegetation depends on a combination of temperatures above 10°C for a certain period of time.

We therefore avoid planting too early where it can get hot at the end of winter and when frost is still a danger. The choice of vines to plant depends on several factors:
soil type; exposure; climate (annual rainfall) and the type of grape.  The choice is to focus on the variety of vine (grape) and especially on the rootstock. 99.99% of the vines are grafted to resist phylloxera.

Originally American rootstocks were derived from Vitis rupestris which does not produce wine but is resistant to phylloxera.  For a century, a selection has been undertaken to produce different types of rootstock to influence the behavior of the vine and its adaptation to the soil (soil, climate, exposure). Then you can use different clones of the variety to be chosen more or less productive or where the cycle of maturation of the grapes will differ.  Almost all grafting techniques are applied on the vine.
Tillage
Tillage is practiced: to avoid or limit the growth of weeds;
Preserving the richness of the soil by reducing erosion, it can also exacerbate erosion and transfer of pollutants including pesticides adsorbed on soil particles;
As an alternative to the use of certain pesticides (herbicides, limacides);
Channelling the vine to allow it to tap its resources more deeply by destroying the root surface.

Agricultural machinery is mainly used: – the claws (in winter), to “break” the soil and encourage deep rooting, – the “Actisol” or cultivator for aerating the soil surface and getting rid of weeds - the intercept or decavaillonneuse (tied mostly to the actisol) to do the same work but between each foot (inaccessible with other tools).

Faced with degradation and growing soils, winemakers have increasingly used the weed under control that protects the soil better and even helps restore it (recurrence of humus).  By competing with the roots of young plants, weeds force the vines to be rooted more deeply, making it more resistant to water stress. (They are deliberately planted between rows to maintain soil erosion and unleash a more natural ecosystem).
This technique allows the preservation of the ecosystem and the richness of the soil by strongly limiting erosion, avoiding the use of herbicides, maintaining a milder microclimate in the vineyard, inviting the roots of the vines to pick up water and nutrients at depth, without traumatizing them by ploughing or scraping.

Fertilization
Organic materials
The organic matter does not directly feed the plant. It provides ground elements required for its fertility. It must be buried in the first centimeters of soil (mechanically or by earthworms and microorganisms in the soil), so that it is decomposed in the presence of some oxygen.

It may be of animal origin (feces, feathers, shells) or (especially) plant.  Animal matter is considered as a fertilizer providing mainly nitrogen. Except in the case of BRF (Bois Ramial Chipped), the plant material must come from “ripe” plants (that is to say lignified) and fermentable (sycamore leaves or rice straw, for example, do not have good input, because very little of them is fermentable).

Requirements for restitution are calculated according to the type of soil, its rich biodiversity and climate. It gives an average for maintenance, the equivalent of 5 to 15 tons of manure per year per hectare