About 100,000 beehives are trucked from the east coast to South Australia during the almond blossom season annually because bees have been proven to increase almond yields. So when Cullen wineries wanted to improve the reliability of the chardonnay yields from its Margaret River vineyard, their winemaker thought that bees might provide the solution. A hive was installed on site and the bees were trained to seek out chardonnay flowers. The experiment saw an increase in the yield of eight percent (or 60 cases of premium chardonnay) in the first year.
This is just one of many tools that winemakers are employing to encourage healthy ecosystems which in turn impact a vineyard’s productivity. Others include replacing chemicals with organic and biodynamic sprays, (like horn silica preparation) and planting cover crops (like peas, marigolds and crimson clover) between the vines.
More honey, more flowers, more wine… win, win, win.
Fascinating how ecofriendly solutions can be leveraged. I used to help my Great Uncle with his beehives and they are amazing to watch and work with. I would love to know how they trained them to search out and cross-pollinate Chardonnay flowers.
I think they encouraged beautiful, sexy bees to hang out near the Chardonnay flowers! Victoria’s Secret special here!
LOL. That would work! Maybe they also spray a little Tom Ford on the pistils and stamens to set the mood. I always thought Victoria’s Secret were creative people (although I only buy it for the articles).