Water and Grapes (2)
My father, who had been curious about the silver bag for a while, finally asked, "What is that you're holding?"
"This? Ta-da!"
I opened the thick bag, and my parents peered inside with wide eyes. With its blue carrier-style console, rounded lid, and pressure gauge, it looked like a piece of equipment that a layman wouldn't even know how to use.
"It's a pressure chamber. People call it a pressure bomb. It's a tool for measuring leaf water potential."
"Water potential? Is there such a thing?"
"Ah, it's called Stem Water Potential, or SWP for short. You could say it's a thirst indicator that the tree tells us itself."
"Oh, that's fascinating."
"To measure it, I use this silver foil bag like this..."
I unfolded a sheet of silver foil and wrapped it around the petiole, where the leaf meets the stem.
"You must choose a mature leaf, and then we wait for about 10 to 15 minutes in this state."
"Okay. While we wait, let me ask you one more thing, son. Anthocyanins and tannins? Why are they so important in wine?"
"Oh, Dad, that's a great question. Basically, anthocyanins determine the color of the grape. If there's plenty of anthocyanin, the purple hue becomes deeper."
My mother chimed in, "Is a deeper color all there is to it?"
"Mom, it might seem like nothing, but it's surprisingly important. Just like the saying 'a good-looking rice cake tastes better,' a deep color raises expectations before you even take a sip. Actually, it also influences the aroma through something called co-pigmentation, but that's not the main point. Either way, the formula is simple: more anthocyanin means deeper color, and deeper color means a higher wine score."
"A formula... I should memorize that."
"Good! You've got the spirit of a student, Mom."
"I was quite the student back in my school days, you know."
"Haha. And tannins are the real core of wine; they create the texture. You know when we drink something like black tea, and it feels... how do I put it?"
"You mean that dry, fuzzy feeling in your mouth?"
"Yeah, something like that. That subtle friction is what gives red wines like Cabernet their weight and structure, keeping them from feeling like plain water. But the key here is proper tannin levels. More isn't always better."
My mother looked at me as if seeing me in a new light.
"How do you know so much about wine? Did you learn this at school? But wait, wine is alcohol, isn't it?"
"...... It's just theory, theory... Wine is the alpha and omega of a vineyard, after all."
"My, our son is so smart."
My mother accepted my lie without a hint of doubt, stroking my shoulder with pride.
Time flew by as we chatted.
"Alright, I'll take it out now. By covering it with the silver foil bag, the leaf is shielded from sunlight and wind, allowing its water status to balance with the stem. Since the stem and the leaf now have the same water status, cutting the leaf allows us to check the stem's condition."
"Oh, I see."
"Now, I'll cut the leaf and insert it into the chamber here. Did you see that?"
My father filmed it with his camera, afraid he might forget. He wanted to keep studying it so he could do it himself later.
"I'll slowly increase the pressure to about 0.3 bar per second. Then, the moment water beads up at the tip of the petiole...!"
My hand stopped, and I checked the reading.
"Look. It's at minus 9 bar."
"Oh, is it?"
I tilted my head at the pressure reading. My father asked, "Why? Is something wrong?"
"Haven't you been watering them enough? Minus 9 is right on the edge... if it hits minus 10, the tree is under stress. It means it's lacking water."
"But didn't you say earlier that we should keep the water a bit low?"
"Ah, that depends on the growth stage. It's good not to stress them too much until early spring. Until about... June?"
I looked at the vines and furrowed my brow.
"I think I know why this farm's productivity dropped. It must be because water was supplied consistently regardless of the growth stage. The soil fertility was already weakened from years of farming, but they provided too little water when the trees needed to build their canopy and photosynthetic engines, and then provided too much during the veraison-to-harvest period when they should have been stressed. That's why the fruit quality was poor. Especially for the Cabernet Sauvignon we grow—we're supposed to reach a point right before harvest where we barely give them any water at all... and on top of that, pests struck. It was bound to fail."
I immediately opened the drip irrigation valves further, and my parents looked at the vines with grave expressions.
"My goodness... we didn't even know, we just thought they were growing well..."
My mother stroked the trees repeatedly, clearly heartbroken, and my father asked anxiously, "It'll be okay now that we've increased it, right?"
"Yes. It's not too late. Please increase the water supply across the board. Aim for minus 7 to 8. If you really want to push it, maybe 6. You've learned how to do it, right?"
"Yeah. I'll watch the footage I took and practice it on my own."
Even after I said that, my mother remained silent, still upset.
"Don't worry too much. We've used Biochar Compost and even air-fertilizer packs, so these vines are growing in the best soil in the world. Look, doesn't the ground feel different?"
At that, my parents examined the soil around the vines and said, "It really is different. The feeling when you step on it is distinct. It feels like walking on a sponge."
My mother's expression brightened at the mention of the soil. The guilt she felt toward the trees had vanished.
"When harvest time comes, the grapes will tell us how much care we put into them. They're going to grow incredibly well, so don't worry."
"Right, I have my son, so I won't worry. And I'll raise them just as my son tells me to."
I felt glad I had checked the water potential with the pressure chamber today. If I had waited any longer, the harvest might have been smaller than expected due to water deficiency. I suspected the previous owner, John Anderson, had heard somewhere that it was good to keep water a bit low and had taken it too far.
As we finished packing up the equipment and headed down, a few people were unexpectedly waiting at the farm entrance. The person in the lead looked familiar, and upon closer inspection, I was surprised to see it was Pierce Morgan from the Agricultural Extension Office.
"Mr. Pierce!"
I ran over and held out my hand, and he shook it firmly.
"Good to see you. These must be your parents?"
"Ah, yes."
My parents approached, looking surprised by the sudden visitors. Pierce smiled, greeted them, and introduced the people accompanying him one by one.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Pierce Morgan, Regional Agricultural Program Director at the USDA's Agricultural Extension Office. This is Dr. Lewis, a soil scientist. He specializes in soil structure, organic matter content, and pesticide residue testing."
"Hello."
"Oh, yes..."
Dr. Lewis shook my father's bewildered hand with his thick palm.
"This is Karen Willis, a pest management expert; Elee Lee, who handles water quality analysis; and finally, Mark Evans, who coordinates organic certification procedures."
My father still looked puzzled.
"What brings you all here today...?"
Pierce looked around slowly before getting to the point.
"We are currently selecting pilot sites for the 'Regional Organic Transition Project' across California. In short, we're creating 'model farms' that the USDA and the UC Davis Agricultural Extension Office will directly support and manage for the next three years."
My heart skipped a beat.
"By any chance... our farm?"
"That's right. We received an official notice from the Department of Agriculture and were debating which farm to select, but after you visited our office, your farm came to mind."
He then looked at my father and continued.
"Redwood Vineyard has excellent conditions. You're already practicing eco-friendly farming, and since you're in the early stages of transition, it's easy to establish a plan. Are you interested in applying?"
My mother glanced at me and asked cautiously, "If we do that... what changes?"
Pierce grinned, opened the folder he had brought, and explained calmly.
"First, there's the transition cost subsidy. You'll receive a 75% subsidy every year for certification application fees, soil and water analysis, organic fertilizers, and the purchase of natural predators. If you need equipment or facility improvements, low-interest loans are available, and you can also rent equipment from the Agricultural Extension Office."
Dr. Lewis immediately added, "We will provide soil and water testing for free every year, and if any pesticide residues are found, we will immediately devise a countermeasure."
My parents were already swayed by the financial support; they looked at each other, trying to keep their composure. Pierce continued his explanation.
"Second, there is technical support. We will provide a team of experts that can be deployed immediately in case of pest outbreaks, and we will design an Organic System Plan as a farm operation manual for the next three years. Of course, since this young man is doing so well, you're free to do it yourself if you prefer."
"I will do it myself."
As if he expected that, Pierce twitched his eyebrows and continued.
"Third, marketing support. You can use the title of a 'Pilot Project Farm,' and Redwood Vineyard will be introduced on the USDA and UC Davis websites and newsletters. We can also host buyer invitation events for you."
My father, full of anticipation, nodded and asked, "Then how long does organic certification take?"
"Brian here knows this well. The legal 36-month transition period remains the same, but we provide priority scheduling for audits and document consulting. The probability of passing in one go without re-audits becomes much higher."
He looked directly at me.
"Brian, if you're ready, I'll help you with the documentation process from the start. Would you like to apply?"
I took a breath and exchanged glances with my parents. My father's expression was already decided, and my mother gave a slight smile.
I nodded.
"Sounds good. We will apply for the pilot project for Redwood Vineyard."
A heavy, satisfied smile spread across Pierce's face.
"Excellent. Today will be an important day for this farm."