Tule Technologies vineyard sensor

Tule Technologies vineyard sensor.

story_800349-2

Tule data dashboard.

Reaping the Benefits of Cutting-Edge Irrigation Technologies

An increasing number of vineyard managers in Napa Valley are experimenting with cutting-edge technologies to precisely target irrigation scheduling, save water and increase the quality of the fruit on the vine.
Tule Technologies and Ranch Systems provide tools to vintners to measure Actual Evapotranspiration, vine stress and wirelessly provide vineyard data that can be linked to automated irrigation. Pine Ridge Vineyards and Chateau Montelena Winery were early adopters of these technologies and they are impressed with the results.

Our Ranch Systems weather stations combined with the Tule sensors have significantly reduced water use as well as labor. And with precision irrigation, the fruit quality dramatically improves.

Gustavo Aviña, vineyard manager for Pine Ridge Vineyards, first installed a Tule Sensor system at one of their up valley vineyards and spent a year comparing the data against pressure bomb readings. The numbers matched up, leading Aviña to install Tule systems at all of the estate vineyards eliminating the need for time intensive pressure bomb readings. Aviña was facing a particular challenge at their Las Posadas vineyard, which is furthest from the winery. This is typically the last vineyard picked and during harvest it was difficult to send someone up to start and stop the irrigation on a precise time table. Irrigation would occaisionally be delayed because the team was too busy down valley, often relying on the pre-set schedule to guide irrigation versus feedback from the vineyard about overall need.
The Pine Ridge team decided to install a combined Tule and Ranch System with automated irrigation. Today Aviña starts and stops irrigation at the Las Posadas vineyard from his computer, providing the vines with the right amount of water at the right time. This also allows him to irrigate at night when desired, reducing evaporative loss. In the process, they’ve cut water use, improved labor efficiency and fine-tuned the Las Posadas vineyard to produce the highest quality fruit.

Once the vines show visual symptoms of stress, the root cause has already taken hold. Decisions are reactionary. Tule shows us vine stress through water status considerably before the vines exhibit visual stress. This accelerates the feedback loop and allows us to tailor irrigation in real-time based on current conditions.

Chateau Montelena has 100 acres of estate vineyards broken into several blocks. Winemaker Matt Crafton had two favorite blocks on the estate where he installed Tule sensors to establish the timing and patterns of water stress that were leading to the desired quality of fruit. After a complete vintage, Chateau Montelena began applying this new knowledge to another two blocks that were consistently underperforming – experiencing both excessive vigor and delivering average fruit quality.
Using data from the high-performing vineyards, Crafton fed targets and parameters into the online system for how much stress they wanted to see over time, using this information to time irrigation and to refine the parameters of several growing seasons. The results have been dramatic: A former problem block now produces estate fruit every year and what was the least desriable vineyard block is now the the shining star. Crafton says, “This system has paid for itself twenty times over in terms of quality improvements, not to mention we significantly reduced our water use.”

Read the Series:

1

Save Water, Save Money, Maximize Quality | Efficient, targeted irrigation benefits the bottom line and fruit quality, ensuring vines get the right amount of water at the right time.

2

Reaping the Benefits of Cutting-Edge Irrigation Technologies | Two companies offer precision irrigation technologies to Napa Valley vineyard managers.

Making the commitment to third party certification takes time and effort, but it is worth it to demonstrate our commitment to the community and to protect our watershed, our land and the air we breathe.​

A live check in with @abrittain & @reyeswine.mw!
15 1
🌿 Did you know that less than 3% of philanthropic donations go to environmental work? 

Please consider donating to Napa Green this giving season with one of several ways at any level! 

Head to the link in our bio for details!
37 1
With gratitude and joy, we wish you a beautiful day & start to the holiday season from all of us at Team Green! 

- Ben, Meghan, Anna, Marissa, Sierra & Megan
75 1
‘If not here, where? If not now, when?’ 

“The onus is on us as a world class wine growing region to be leaders in sustainability & climate action.” 

- Executive Director of Napa Green, Anna Brittain
29 1
It’s been a big week at Napa Green and we want to take a moment to raise a glass to salute you all. 

We are overjoyed to see so much support and invigorated interest in our mission towards sustainable practices and regenerative agriculture in the wine industry. 

We have many more details, paired with educational & financial resources that are already up and rolling on our website. We will continue to share them all, one by one and in great detail here on socials as well. 

For now please plan on joining us at our upcoming Town Hall meeting on Dec 7th at @stsupery. You can find more details at napagreen.org. 

Cheers and Happy Friday Napa Valley. We are so proud to be a part of this amazing community!
111 11
⚠️ Important Announcement 

Napa Green becomes the first sustainable wine growing certification to require the phaseout of Round Up. 

Please find the link in our bio for the full press release and full suite of info & grower resources. 

Join us on December 7th for our Napa Green Town Hall at @stsupery.
157 30
Don’t miss the awe-inspiring @nikki_silvestri at @dominusestatewinery on Nov 30th!
19 1
You’re invited to join us for a very special day at @dominusestatewinery on November 30th. 

We’ll be briefly interviewing our speaker @nikki_silvestri right here on Instagram today at 2:00pm PST to hear more about what to expect at this event. See you then.
40 2
Curious to learn more? Join us at @dominusestatewinery on November 30th for a rare event and luncheon. Link in bio for details.
50 1
GREEN is the new black this season!! 

Head to the link in our bio now and get your shirts, help a good cause and be an honorary part of Team Green this season! 💚
87 9
Let’s hear it for our Executive Director of Napa Green, the incomparable Anna Brittain for being named a 2023 Wine Industry Leader by @winebusinessmonthly!! 

In their Sustainability Stewards section (which we love to see) we find Anna named in good company with inspired fellow leaders! 

Head to our stories or the link in our bio for free access to the full November issue. 

Cheers to the great work of our visionary Director Anna Brittain!!
97 8
Drink Green this Halloween! 💚
36 1
Sierra is our Soil & Climate Specialist at Napa Green and her ask this year is that everyone consider donating to our small but mighty Team Green for Giving Season! 

Here is more from @regenwithsierra: 

“🎃 Happy Halloween Eve everyone! Today is my birthday, and I would be beyond thrilled if you would consider a donation to @napagreen to support a nonprofit focused on climate action in the wine industry 🍷🍾

@napagreen has the leading set of standards for sustainable practices, from soil to bottle. I am most proud of the work we do with winegrape growers to adopt regenerative agricultural practices in their vineyards. 

Please consider supporting us in our mission!  Click the link in bio for more! “
63 6
Thank you for having us @visitnapavalley! We had a great time talking to visitors about the many sustainability practices our Napa Green wineries and vineyards employ! 

Stop into the Visit Napa Valley Visitor Center in Napa to learn more!
76 2