By Bryan Calandrelli, Niagara Regional Editor

There are certain things you can learn from drinking wine and reading about winemaking or wine science.

In my experience though other aspects like viticulture and canopy management can really only be grasped working hands-on the vineyard. I’ve gained some basic knowledge in the last few seasons here but there is so much more for me to learn before I go planting a small vineyard.

My idea behind this video and future videos is to demonstrate basic methods of vine management during the season with at least three wineries using different trellis systems. Each has their benefits and drawbacks and I hope I can shed some light on each.

This first video includes Randy Biehl from Eveningside Vineyards winter pruning his VSP cane-pruned system. Biehl was trained in the vineyards of Cave Spring Winery and he was taught that this system is best for cold climate vines.

Kurt Guba of Freedom Run Winery also demonstrates some winter pruning with their VSP spur-pruned technique. Guba’s method is obviously faster and I hope readers will chime in with the drawbacks and positives of cane versus spur pruning.