Wine growers 'on tip of Africa' race to adapt to climate change – Yahoo Finance UK

Childcare is eye-wateringly expensive, here are some ways to save money
At a South African wine farm, dry, uprooted grapevines are stacked at the bottom of a hilly stretch of brown fallow land.
Much of the vineyard is being replanted to better cope with climate change, which is projected to bring rarer but more violent rainfall to this wine-loving corner of the world.
From Australia to California, France, Spain and Italy, producers in wine-growing regions around the world face a race to adapt to a changing climate which affects the grapes.
"I don't like just accepting things. Let's put up a bit of a fight," said Rosa Kruger, the viticultural consultant overseeing the project in the Cape Winelands region east of Cape Town.
Like other wine farms surrounding the city of Stellenbosch, the Reyneke estate's vineyards were ill-equipped to withstand climatic shocks, she said.
"In the old days we used to have square blocks," Kruger, 64, sporting boots, jeans and a dark windbreaker jacket, told AFP of the planting set-up she is in the process of replacing.
To better deal with heavy rains, the new grapevines are being laid out to conform with the hilly landscape.
The replanting is done in phases, with old vines notably Chenin, the emblematic grape variety of France's Loire region, keeping up production while the new ones grow.
It can take them up to four years to become productive.
"We designed the vineyards according to the natural lay of the land," said Kruger.
– Erratic climate –
Drains to collect rainwater run between each plot, converging into a reservoir that is to provide water during dry spells.
Native shrubs have also been planted across the estate to increase biodiversity, bringing back insects and other animals in a bid to render the surrounding soil healthier.
Pine trees brought by European settlers that used to stand at the edge of the vineyards have been uprooted as they used too much water.
Natural fertiliser is provided by dozens of cows living on the property.
"We want to build and conceive the perfect farm, one that will still be relevant in 50 or 100 years," said Rudiger Gretschel, 46, Reyneke's chief winemaker and director.
The estate enjoys fairly favourable conditions like "granite soils" and "proximity to the ocean", he said.
But growing grapes "on the tip of Africa" can be a challenge.
"Climate is already erratic," he said. "We already get very little rain. It is already very hot."
Things are set to get worse.
The planet is on track for a disastrous heating of up to almost 3 degrees Celsius this century, according to the United Nations.
And Stellenbosch's Western Cape province is expected to see a 30-percent decrease in annual rainfall by 2050, according to other projections.
While less frequent, rains are set to become more intense — making flooding more common.
"If people don't believe in global warming, they should come to South Africa," said Kruger, who says she faced a good deal of scepticism when she started advocating for climate adaptation more than a decade ago.
Less than an hour's drive away, Cape Town already suffers from water shortages.
"When the rains are fewer, that water will go to the city people, not to the farmers," Kruger said. "That's why it is crucial to become self-sufficient. That's the whole idea."
ger/ub/kjm
Scott Haraguchi documented the assault on his vessel and offers a theory as to why the shark became aggressive.
Another Arctic April plunge will deep freeze parts of the UK
The Met Office has said that there will be a "good deal of dry weather for many areas" with settled conditions likely to move upwards, with the north-west set to feel the heat the most
It was one of many items in the garden displaced by the 'mini tornado'
A hippo sprayed excrement after being provoked by a group of lions in Kenya on March 29, according to a local wildlife-spotting group.Maasai Sightings said their footage showed lions from the Rongai pride approaching and provoking the “grumpy” hippo, which then responded by marking its territory. The group of lions swiftly retreated in response.Maasai Sightings is a platform that posts wildlife and nature videos from the Maasai Mara game reserve to raise awareness of wildlife and nature. Credit: Maasai Sightings via Storyful
‘This is unprecedented in California’s history,’ says Stanford professor
The ‘tornado’ left debris scattered across streets in Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire
Underwater mountains are biodiversity hotspots and researchers exploring the Salas y Gómez ridge off Chile have found 50 species probably new to science. How much more has yet to be discovered?
The UK is set to be hit by a snowbomb in the coming days with nine-inch flurries hitting parts of England, according to the latest weather maps from WxCharts
According to the Met Office, weather conditions will “settle down” this weekend – but is there any chance of a heatwave?
By studying whales, researchers hope to develop filters to any future extraterrestrial signals humans may receive
Salvage crews on Sunday, April 14, successfully removed a large portion of the Francis Scott Key Bridge that had been blocking the Fort McHenry channel on the Patapsco River, officials said.This footage was released by the US Coast Guard, which said it shows the removal of section 1-A of the bridge from the water.“Debris and wreckage removal is ongoing in support of a top priority to safely and efficiently open the Fort McHenry channel,” the coast guard said.On Monday, April 15, local media reported that the FBI had launched a criminal investigation into the incident, while Mayor of Baltimore Brandon Scott announced that the city was taking “legal action to hold the wrongdoers responsible and to mitigate the immediate and long-term harm caused to Baltimore City residents.” Credit: US Coast Guard via Storyful
Business Insider looked at the cities people in the US are fleeing instead of moving to. That includes several California cities like Los Angeles.
Researchers studying Antarctica's remote Weddell Sea have picked up particles far smaller than previous studies.
Flights arriving into Dubai airport – the world's busiest for international travel – are being temporarily diverted this evening to other locations as the city-state is hit by major flooding after heavy rainfall.
A nature reserve is to be flooded by the developer of the Hinkley Point C nuclear plant at a cost of £50m to compensate for the death of fish in its cooling pipes.
An alleged tornado hit a Staffordshire town on Monday, damaging the roofs of several houses as severe wind swept through the region
The Met Office issued a yellow weather warning lasting until 10pm on Monday.
High pressure is set to sweep in from the Atlantic bringing light winds and sunshine
Residents say their communities are already bursting at the seams

source

About The Author

admin

See author's posts