ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Monday, March 25, 1996 TAG: 9603250124
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C5 EDITION: METRO
DATELINE: CHARLOTTESVILLE
SOURCE: ASSOCIATED PRESS
Vintners along the Blue Ridge Mountains say conditions this spring and summer will determine whether their vineyards can recover from rare sub-zero winter temperatures that ravaged grape buds.
February's severe cold damaged the still-dormant buds on grape vines. Some vineyards reported 95 percent of the buds killed.
``These freezes occur once every five to 10 years,'' said Tony Wolf, a viticulture specialist for the Extension Service at Virginia Tech. ``It affected the whole eastern U.S.''
Nearly a dozen area wineries have filed applications for federal disaster aid. Vintners hesitate to put a firm figure to the damage, explaining that the full impact of the early freeze cannot be gauged until harvest time.
``Production will be reduced, there's no speculation there,'' Wolf said. ``How far off it will be is speculative.''
A damp spring and dry summer - ideal growing weather - could offset some early bud damage. Also, secondary buds will push through if primary buds are dead, though generally they yield smaller and less fruitful clusters.
``It depends on the spring,'' said Luca Paschina, manager and winemaker for Barboursville Winery in Orange County, which is estimating about 40 percent damage from the cold snap.
LENGTH: Short : 34 linesby CNB