Will inherited a vineyard site with young vines that had been chemically managed with high doses of inputs like urea, herbicides, and foliar feeds to maximise cropping from the get-go. This resulted in oversized vines that were very high yielding, but also so vigorous that they needed constant trimming!

• Will’s priority was to reduce vigour. He immediately stopped using synthetic fertilisers and foliars and instead moved to either no fertilisers, or organic fertilisers that are generally much lower in nitrogen than their conventional counterparts. As a result he halved the chemical bill in the first year, and further reduced it again in the second year to a third of what it was.
• During the conversion, Will tracked that the vines’ vigour dropped by about 20% which means the vines will be healthier in the long term and grape quality is very good with yields ample for a profitable vineyard.
• The main difference 4 years on between his organic and regenerative vines is that he still uses synthetic fungicides in his non-organic vines. 
• Will acknowledges that undervine management without herbicides is a major time commitment currently, this is something he wants to further investigate for future seasons.

Will emphasises that organic and regenerative viticulture work around the core principle of having a balanced vine. He says that most vineyards in the UK are too vigorous due to our fertile soils and  management.

• Will shares that balanced vines are more resistant to disease; in 2021, the conventional vineyard next door sprayed with synthetics and had much worse botrytis than Will’s unsprayed organic vines. He believes the conventional vines were just too leafy and green, the vines were out of balance and the soft leaves had no way of defending themselves against botrytis.
• To get quality grapes and therefore great wine that sells you need a balanced vine. If vines are too vigorous the grapes don’t ripen as well or if not vigorous enough won’t have enough energy to grow the grapes and get lots of small berries. Steady or slightly increasing pruning weights help Will to know when the vine is in balance.
• With good canopy management Will and his team are generally able to keep powdery mildew, downey mildew and botrytis under control. They also spray regularly with Sulphur and then use potassium bicarbonate, Botector and copper for any outbreaks.

Will stresses that tracking and monitoring his vines is a hugely important part of his vineyard management, and is something he prioritises for keeping the business profitable. This prevents “just chucking money at things” across all vineyard blocks. 

• The Davenport team tracks vine vigour by monitoring the prunings weights as measure of soil fertility and vigour. This data is visualised in Sectormentor and allows the team to be targeted with inputs, like organic fertiliser, applying only to areas that specifically need them.
• Will discusses the importance of knowing where disease often starts and constantly checking those vines. Acting quickly is vital to prevent serious damage if disease does arise.
• Check weather forecasts regularly and know when you are at higher risk from disease. He gives the example of Downey Mildew only setting in if you have over 10mm rain overnight and a temperature above 10 degrees.