2009 "Pruning" @ 916 1-2 August

Hello everyone!

We found out last week that 90% of the vineyard is not viable due to the extreme heat and or/being burnt during the bushfires in February.

We're not making any rash or hurried decisions about what to do short term (or long for that matter!) and have been advised that the best we can do at this stage is is prune back the north and south rows of vines to the crowns. The west block of vines (in front of the house) might have survived. We'll be more certain in Spring.

So, a Pruning Working Bee it will bee. 1st - 2nd August. Depending on how many workers, we're thinking that the plan will be to arrive around 10am and work until about 5pm with a break for lunch and then celebration (very casual) barbecue dinner. Everyone is welcome to camp over! Friends' friends are welcome. We're casting the net wide figuring that many hands make light work... and the more the merrier. We're figuring that if we have about 30 people we might be able to complete both the north and south blocks in the one day.

The work will be basically 2 main jobs which you can easily switch between to relieve monotony: Wearing gloves and using secateurs, to cut the vines right back to the knobbly bit (crown) just snip snip snip and/or pulling out last year's vines which is more like yank snip pull. Clearly very technical instructions. Can bring headphones for entertainment, or, from personal experience, I happen to know it is possible to talk the whole time whilst working :-) Seriously, we'll brief onsite. We're keen to be as sympathetic as possible to the vines, but it should not be too difficult or tedious. On a good day we've thought it therapeutic!

We'd ask you to BYO secateurs and gloves (if you have them, if not, we will source) and drinks (soft for day, as hard as you like for night). We'll work out crowd pleasing catering for lunch and dinner.

You've all offered to help, and you all already have in so many, many ways, so please do not feel pressure or compelled at all.

If you're free and willing, we'd love you to come up and snip yank pull bee @ 916.

Ideally, please let me know by next Friday 17th July what the likelihood is of being able to make it? Then we'll be able to estimate more accurately how many hours we'll have to work and what catering will be required etc.

Thanks again... and in advance! We really do so very much appreciate all your encouragement and support.

Love from E-M and JB x x

P.S. Thought for Saturday 1st August: "There is always some worse off..."