flowers and vines in Lavaux - june 2016

bearded iris
​
grow from rhizomes planted close to the surface
​
they like full sun in well-drained soil.

iris germanica

iris... so many colors...
​
​the word iris means rainbow...

jardins des iris - château de Vullierens VD - has a splendid display of iris

iris sibirica 'white swan'

siberian iris

​loves heavy, clay soils and wet feet

cornus kousa: white flowers are in reality not flowers, but leaves

cornus kousa: spiky fruit in fall

another spring favorite: peony succumbing to the onslaught of continuous rain

how strong these grape plants are:
​
new leaves and stems push through the red wax on our new plants

'capite' = small hut in the vineyards that was used in the past to store tools and materials, to take shelter from storms

two great spring flowering trees:
dogwood and tulip tree

the tulip tree (liriodendron) is a member of the magnolia family and will do well in a location with room to grow (up to 15-20m)

brilliant golden leaves in fall

cornus kousa (dogwood)
is a much smaller tree
​(up to 4-5m)
that even likes a bit of shade

also beautiful in fall with orange and red leaves and interesting spiky fruit

RAIN RAIN and more RAIN

inflorescences are still grouped together - flowering is late this year due to colder weather and lots of rain

spraying with fungicides against downy mildew (mildiou) and powdery mildew (oïdium):

​especially now with the wet conditions this is a must in the vineyard...

the helicopters in Lavaux are starting this year with non-synthetic products against fungi:

mixture of sulfur, copper, brown algae, potassium bicarbonate and potassium phosphonate

(only the last one is not approved for bio production)

skimmed milk is used to help these substances adhere to the plants better

copper to fight 'mildiou'

sulfur against 'oïdium'

​are used by both organic as well as conventional grape growers

liriodendron tulipifera

lonicera

two beautiful flowering vines: lonicera and clematis.

clematis

effective method to prevent grape worms
'Vers de la grappe':

​​plastic strips that contain pheromones to confuse the butterflies/moths so they do not breed and produce larvae.. 

almost every day this bird of prey circles our vineyard - sometimes on its own, sometimes a twosome - probably black kite (milan noir).