Pruning

The removal of living canes, shoots, leaves, and other vegetative growth. Vines are usually pruned in winter when the plant is dormant (and thus less susceptible to diseases that could infiltrate the vine via the pruning wounds). Pruning is generally severe. About 90% of the previous season’s growth is removed each year. Pruning keeps vines manageable and affects how the vine will grow in the following year. Thus, pruning can be used to regulate the size and quality of the next year’s crop. Pruning is usually done by hand with shears, but mechanical pruners do exist to speed up pruning in large vineyards, especially in countries like Australia where agricultural workers are in short supply.

The name “Burgundy” comes from:

A. The medieval French word for a small village, similar to the Old English “burg”

B. A nomadic German tribe which once settled in the area

C. The Latin word Burgarius which was the name for a Roman province that once extended over most of central France

D. The early French rural governing bodies which were made up of noble councilmen known as Burrs

The name Burgundy dates back to the 6^th century when a barbaric, wandering Germanic tribe known as Burgondes established a settlement in central France after the fall of the Roman Empire. They called the region Burgundia. However, even before the region was named, grapes grew in Burgundy. The area’s first documented vineyard was planted in the village of Meursault in the first century A.D.

150

The approximate number of grape varieties planted in commercially significant amounts worldwide. This number represents just a sliver of the total number of grape varieties – some 5,000 to 10,000.

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