October 2022 - 6

Sauvignon Blanc grapes at Woodward
Canyon
ELEVATION
CONTINUED FROM PAGE 1
planted their first winegrapes on the
family's dryland wheat ranch, establishing
the Woodward Canyon Estate Vineyard
with the winery following in 1981. The
Smalls helped secure federal approval
of the Walla Walla Valley American
Viticultural Area in 1984; it has the
highest concentration of wineries in the
state at 120, with about 3,000 acres of
winegrapes.
The Small's children, Sager and Jordan,
own and run the operation. Sager is
vineyard manager and his sister Jordan is
general manager. While officially retired,
Rick and Darcey Small remain involved
in the family business. At 75, Rick Small
walks through the vineyards regularly
and promotes the company's wine
internationally.
Woodward Canyon's vineyards grow winegrapes on the hills on the west side of the Walla Walla Valley in eastern Washington.
Elevation is key
If the vineyard was any lower than its
900-foot elevation, cold fronts would
bring a higher frost risk. Usually windy
and sunny, the combination of heat
and wind produce smaller berries from
the favorable skin-to-juice ratio. Plant
competition is heightened in the high
density smaller vines.
Leaves are manually removed to
combat powdery mildew, which has
become a large issue throughout the
valley this year. The Smalls limit mowing
to later in the year, a couple of times
Sager Small of Woodward Canyon Winery, examines some Merlot grapes.
a year at most. The reduced mowing
helps grass reseed. Frequent mowing
limits favorable seedhead, important in
attracting beneficial insects.
Five acres of green belts adjacent to
the vineyards include western juniper
and ponderosa pine groves, western
sage brush, arrow leaf balsam root
and other native species, including
perennial wildflowers.
Sager Small catalogs the vineyard's
weeds and native plants and studies
insects.
" There's the simple adage of you will
never have the biocontrol if you don't
have the pest in your vineyard, " he said.
" In order to have the capacity to keep
pests, it's not about not having any pests
in your vineyard. It's about having an
amount of pests that won't be detrimental
to your crop. "
Sagar Small, who earned degrees in
culinary winemaking and winegrowing
and is finishing coursework for a
bachelor's degree in environmental
sciences, studies grasses that work
well in vineyards. Collaborating with
Washington State University Extension
personnel, he monitors beneficial insects
through trapping. Wasps and soil samples
are tracked.
Woodward Canyon also limits
spraying, applying crop protectants only
when necessary, he said.
Soil factor
Growing winegrapes in a government
designated high erosion site, soil health
remains critical for Woodward Canyon
6 | FruitGrowersNews.com
Winery, especially in the vineyard's
desert ecology. Biocrust can be protected
by simple practices, such as avoiding
disturbing it by not walking on it, to
keep the soil intact.
" Everything about a cultivated crop
depends on the soil, " Sager Small said.
" If you don't take care of the land, it will
degrade on you. The wind will blow
away your topsoil and you won't have
any beneficial insects around. If your soil
isn't there, you won't be able to farm most
anything without a ton of intervention. "
Sager Small uses a hybrid system of
organic and regenerative agricultural
practices.
While Woodward Canyon's
winegrapes aren't organic, its crop
protectants, which include Stylet-Oil and
micronized sulfur, are common organic
fungicides.
" The thing with sustainability or
regenerative ag programs is you're never
ever really done, " he said. " You are
always wanting to find new ways to keep
getting better every year to reduce your
impacts or reintroduce a new species of
plants. If we could, we would bring our
land back to the state of where it almost
was before man arrived. "
In the valley's fertile winegrape
industry, growers continue increasing
plantings. Growers tell Sager Small
they're planting many new varietals,
which speaks to the region's importance.
" People seem to really like the wine
here, " he said. " People keep moving to
plant more vines. It's a bellwether of
good things. " FGN

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October 2022

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