We have been pruning since March 1, with a little break for our short jaunt to Lancaster, Pennsylvania. The weather has been very warm and we are finding that when we prune, the sap is running. This is nothing compared to the 80 degree temperatures that occurred in Lancaster, PA when we were there on Wednesday and Thursday. Some places in PA are calling for bud break this coming week.
We are certainly at least a month behind PA, but we need to get moving and prune and lay down our canes. Although we have made one pass through the entire vineyard, trimming back the vines and leaving the renewals and the canes we will be laying down, it is still time consuming work. This is really the first time that we are pruning and laying down so many canes and that is good news! It doesn't help our productivity that we stop and gawk at sight like this:
We have learned from experience that we don't automatically destroy life in the vineyard until we find out if it is friend or foe. So, when we went home, we learned that these are the eggs of the common garden spider, or
Argiope aurantia Argiopes are carnivorous and spin an orb web to capture small flying insects such as aphids, flies, grasshoppers, wasps and bees. Definitely a friend! We will leave these egg sacs alone and see what hatches.
References:
1.
Animal Diversity Web: Argiope aurantia.
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