October 2023 - 10

COVER STORY
Deterring
wildlife
Texas Heritage Vineyard controls fruit loss
BY DOUG OHLEMEIER
ASSISTANT EDITOR
D
eep in the heart of the Texas
Hill Country in Fredericksburg,
Texas, Heritage Vineyard
uses trapping and other methods to
control wildlife damage.
Most of the animal damage and
fruit loss is from raccoons and
porcupines, which grab the fruit on
the bottom of clusters and quickly
strip rows of grapes.
" It's something that's a
constant fight for us, " said Tyler
Buddemeyer, winemaker and
10 | OCTOBER 2023
vineyard manager. " We deal with it
every year and I don't think there's
anything that's going to change
about it. So, we just do what works
best for us. "
In the past, the vineyard and
winery relocated animals through
trapping. However, the wildlife
would quickly return, sometimes
faster than the trapper. A friend with
a .22 caliber rifle walking through
vineyard rows at night scoping for
pests helps curb populations.
High fences control deer while
netting helps discourage birds and
protects from hail.
Rodent carcasses left in the
vineyards attract vultures. Smaller
birds can't easily distinguish
vultures from predator hawks, so
they can discourage smaller birds
and the damage they can cause to
fruit. This pest control method has
cut down on bird issues since 2021,
when birds consumed half of a
2-acre vineyard.
While not as big a problem
as porcupines and raccoons,
jackrabbits don't damage the fruit
as much as chew into irrigation
lines, causing leaks. Armadillos
burrow large holes and can become

October 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of October 2023

Editor's Letter
Feature: Answering the Call
Cover Story: Deterring Wildlife
Business: Effective succession planning
Great Lakes EXPO News: Advancing crop management
AgTech: Drone prep
Plant & Soil Health: Biotic vs. abiotic
Farm Market & Agritourism: Know your customers
Ag Labor Review: California court gets it right
Classifieds
Advertiser Index
October 2023 - 1
October 2023 - 2
October 2023 - 3
October 2023 - Editor's Letter
October 2023 - 5
October 2023 - Feature: Answering the Call
October 2023 - 7
October 2023 - 8
October 2023 - 9
October 2023 - Cover Story: Deterring Wildlife
October 2023 - 11
October 2023 - 12
October 2023 - 13
October 2023 - 14
October 2023 - 15
October 2023 - Business: Effective succession planning
October 2023 - 17
October 2023 - 18
October 2023 - 19
October 2023 - Great Lakes EXPO News: Advancing crop management
October 2023 - 21
October 2023 - AgTech: Drone prep
October 2023 - 23
October 2023 - 24
October 2023 - 25
October 2023 - Plant & Soil Health: Biotic vs. abiotic
October 2023 - 27
October 2023 - 28
October 2023 - 29
October 2023 - Farm Market & Agritourism: Know your customers
October 2023 - 31
October 2023 - Ag Labor Review: California court gets it right
October 2023 - 33
October 2023 - Classifieds
October 2023 - Advertiser Index
October 2023 - 36
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