My sister Nan is the president of the Herb Society in Placerville. She manages our vineyard with our dad, Gar Harmon and she's an expert on herbs. Nan's really been working hard to transform our land into a biodynamic oasis! It's great to learn firsthand because there's so much information to learn.
For today's post, I asked Nan to write something about our vineyard's transformation to biodynamic farming.
From Nan—
"Herbs are nature's medicine chest. I believe mother nature offers solutions to people who are willing to learn and utilize the gifts found around us. As our family transforms our vineyard to a biodynamic ecosystem, we'll be including more herbs to protect our vines from harmful pests. We'll definitely benefit from the herbs' culinary and medicinal uses, but our focus will be on using them to combat garden pests and attracting good bugs.
The "bad" insects use our vines for food and protection for their offspring. Well, sorry bugs—we need healthy leaves to produce the best grapes for our wine. No free food for you! The damage from pests, results in plants that can't produce the quality or yield of grapes we depend on...so they've gotta go!
In vineyards, the biggest insect pests are:
- grape leaf hoppers
- spider mites
- mealy bugs
- thripes
- tree hoppers
- ear wigs
- white flies
That’s a lot of hungry bugs!
With so many pests to defend from, we need to attract beneficial insects to our vineyard for the vines to really thrive. Luckily, many beneficial insects are attracted to flowering herbs. The moisture rich herbs feed and shelter the good bugs, allowing them to colonize and keep the surrounding plants healthy. They eat the insect pests we want to control and help minimize their spread if they do show up.
The beneficial insects we want to attract are:
- yellow wasps
- ladybugs
- pirate bugs
- spiders
- lace wings
Our mom, Mary already has some great plants growing in the garden. She's got rosemary, oregano, roses, lavender, lemon balm and lilac hedges. Horehound and yarrow grow wild around the property—and all these herbs are great for bringing in beneficial insects. Soon we'll be planting bay, calendula, dill, basil, chives, tansy, cilantro and fennel to encourage more good bugs in our gardens and to liven up our meals.
There should be an increase in insect activity this spring, and we'll watch and enjoy as the good bugs make a meal out of the the bad ones."