VIN 124 - Crop Management

Credits: 2
Lecture Hours: 2
Lab Hours: 0
Practicum Hours: 0
Work Experience: 0
Course Type: Voc/Tech

This course is an introduction to vineyard crop management, fertilization, harvest issues and the sale of grapes. Prior to taking this course, students should have a basic understanding of vineyard establishment leading up to the years of vineyard fruit production and an understanding of the pruning and canopy management of bearing vineyards.
Competencies

Understand concepts of crop management
1. Correlate impact on shoot growth
2. Contrast thinning practices
3. Determine proper vineyard yield
Describe management of ripening crop
1. Identify fruit quality parameters
2. Investigate how to determine harvest dates
3. Determine methods of crop estimation
4. Calculate vineyard yield
Understand methods to determine and increase vine health
1. Investigate role of petiole sampling.
2. Investigate role of soil sampling
3. Identify visual deficiency symptoms
4. Calculate proper fertilization rates
5. Develop vineyard health program
Evaluate harvest issues
1. Identify benefits and drawbacks to hand harvesting
2. Identify benefits and drawbacks to machine harvesting
3. Investigate fruit handling issues post harvest
Investigate marketing of the grape crop
1. Evaluate marketing methods
2. Formulate grape contract
Analyze vineyard economics
1. Calculate costs.
2. Calculate income.
3. Estimate break even points
4. Compare vineyard cash flow scenarios