At the end of January, the dry pruning period for the vines begins. At Carmelo Rodero, we look after each and every one of our plantings to ensure that the bunches of grapes we work with are of the highest quality. Would you like to know how we do it?
Dry pruning, or winter pruning, is a manual task aimed at removing the vine shoots from the previous year, meaning all the branches that sprouted last spring and which, due to the changing seasons, have dried out due to the absence of sap flow. Pruning allows us to control the vigour of the vines and their production, thereby assisting in the rejuvenation of the grapevine.
It is called this because it must be carried out before the arrival of spring and, therefore, the budding of the new shoots. Special attention must be paid to the weather, in order to avoid the worst of the frosts, on the one hand, and rainy days, on the other. In this way, we prevent the shoots from dying due to drastic drops in temperature, and we also stop the spread of fungi that thrive in humid environments and wounds in the wood. Furthermore, to combat the reproduction of these organisms, at Carmelo Rodero we cover the freshly cut wood with a healing paint, which helps to regenerate the plant cells and tissues of the vineyard.
Vineyard management must be carried out throughout the entire year. To obtain our Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot ‘Black Pearls’, at Carmelo Rodero we strive to guide the vine, with the aim of harvesting, in a few months' time, grapes with exceptional qualities with which to make our wines.
This is not the only pruning that takes place throughout the year, but it is the first one we must carry out and the most important.