Can I do 1 more - question but non-boaty

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zzjfawce

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But it is to do with grog and alcohol is a fundamental part of boating
The image is of a vineyard in NZ. Driving past these, couldn't help noticing that there often rose bushes at the ends of the rows of vines. Hopefully you can make these out in the picture. I thought they were just aesthetic, perhaps revealing a soft side to your Kiwi winemaker but I have been informed that they do actually serve a purpose. Any guesses?

Vineyard.jpg
 
According to the Co-op advert currently running on TV it is so that if black spots appear on the roses then the growers can respond and do something before the vines are affected.
 
We went wine tasting in the Napa Valley (California) and were told during a tour that France had lost a lot of their vines due to an infection. The only way to eradicate it is to destroy the complete vineyard. France then re-imported lots of cuttings from California (that had originated in France) to re-exstablish their vineyards.

The roses are even more susceptible to this infection (I think it affects the roots but its effect are visible on the leaves) so show signs of it first. The roses are therefore there as an early warning sign. If they get diseased and a more limited destruction can take place around just the rose and hopefully prevent the infection getting established.

Sorry but can't remember the actual infection/bacteria. I am sure others are more knowlegable - justy repeating what we were told.

PS if you ever holiday in California go Wine tasting for a day. Like most things the Americans have turned wine tasting into a separate earner and do tours for $x encouraging you to drink a series of wines and then buy some cases. We have done it 3x and it was great - what I can remember of it!!
 
I suspect if you went on a serious wine tasting visit around the Napa Valley you would'nt remember what the roses are for! /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
That confirms what I was told. Roses are more sensitive to pests than the vines so they can be used as an indicator of trouble - like they used to use canaries in coal mines, I guess.
Didn't realise the Co-op had an advert for wine - didn't realise the co-op sold alcohol. In fact wasn't even sure the Co-op still existed - used to shop there when I was a student in Newcastle but everywhere in the UK seems to be Tesco and Sainsbury superstores. I was told recently that the Sainsbury distribution centre in Stoke on Trent, which looks utterly humungous, is where they store the TamiFlu for half of England in case bird flu jumps from Bernard Matthews bootiful turkeys to peole
 
There are those of us who seek out Co-Ops, as a small way to avoid Tesco and Sainsbury taking over the universe. And a nice experience it has been, too, not least in the plonk department!
 
Don't know if its anything similar. But there is some cool recent research looking at controlling pests by mixing plant species. It is a very old idea, but by systematically looking at the plant products involved and how they affect major pests, they have had a magic effect on yield.

More here

http://www.push-pull.net/
 
I'm just back from New Zealand staying in Alexandra not far from Queenstown and when I saw the vineyards and there is hundreds of acres of them asked the same question about the roses.
What Pete Cooper gave is an answer was what I was told when I asked the same question as you.
 
It's because certain varieties of roses are more susceptable to Botrytis and Mildew (plant diseases) and so act as an early warning so a protectant fungicide can be applied to the vines before the disease starts to infect them.
 
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