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New opportunities are opening up in vineyards as needs arise
RECISION TECHNOLOGY moves at different speeds across different segments of agriculture. For example, technologies like curve compensation, precision spraying, and subsurface drip irrigation have brought new opportunities for crops like corn and alfalfa, in terms of water use efficiency (WUE) and resource use efficiency (RUE). Other areas experience technology at their own pace.
Grape growing is one area of farming that's on a slightly different precision path than other crops. In fact, it's common for much of the work in a vineyard to be done by hand, from early-season pruning to end-of-fall picking.
Jeremy Smith, Vineyard Sales Manager for RDO Equipment Co. in Salinas, CA, says it's an exciting time for the industry, something he has really noticed since moving to the area nearly three years ago and focusing on the booming vineyard business along the Central Coast region. Thanks to new, specialized offerings from equipment manufacturers, Smith has seen the uptick in opportunities for grape growers to mechanize practices, leading to more economical, efficient, and effective businesses.
Vineyard equipment manufacturers have made great strides in bringing mechanization to the industry. Gregoire was among the first companies to provide a machine for grape harvesting. Since then, picking is the task that has seen the biggest shift from manual to machine; and now, other parts of the vineyard management process are starting to follow suit.
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