Nervous times

It can take years and years of backbreaking effort to bring a small vineyard to fruition. Its undoing can take a single night. Frost is a killer of young vineyards. Even in well-established sites, it can cause major vine damage and result in the loss of an entire vintage.

These next few weeks will be nervous times for the State's diminishing band of vignerons who still remain hopeful of ripening their meagre crops following an appalling season.

It will be an especially nerve-racking period for Spring Vale's Rodney and Lyn Lyne.

Already scarred by the ravages of frost early in the season, the best they can hope for is a yield somewhere around half that of last year's 20 tonnes. 

According to Rodney Lyne, "It began by being too dry early, so I had to irrigate all through the winter.

"Come late spring and we got hit by several frosts in a row in November.

"I estimated at the time that we were only going to pick around 20 per cent of what we picked the year before. "

"It was really disheartening. Everything had been going along nicely.

"I decided to cut the vines right back to bare canes and try to start all over again.

"They were six weeks late with their second budburst but I was pretty happy with that.

"I reckon I might get something like 50 per cent from the light crop that's on now – so long as we can hold on to our leaves and not get severe frosts into May."

A reduced crop from this normally reliable East Coast site has been just part of the Lyne family's dilemma, however.

The 230ha grazing property has had much of its horticulture spoiled by the poor weather of recent months.

Onions were written-off by an infection of botrytis. A healthy crop of poppies could not be picked because of summer rains.

"Now, I've got a late crop of onions which should have been harvested but the machinery's been held up in the North-West and can't get here," Lyne says.

"I've hardly done any work myself in the vineyard this year because I've had to work on other things.

"I've had to employ other people instead. 

"We've really just been creating more work for ourselves, and all that for a nil net return."

Plans for additional plantings at Spring Vale this winter have been put on hold while its owners consider ways of reducing the risks faced by their 4 ha of Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Gewürztraminer.

A frost alarm rates highly on their list of priorities. Next will come big-ticket items.

"An alarm system only tells you to put something else on," Lyne adds.

"Overhead sprinklers are one option.

"The other alternative is a wind machine."

Given the wretched weather of the past few months, one can imagine the Lynes won't be far away from making their first down-payment, whatever their choice.

First published 25 April 1996: The Advocate

Last page update: 24 August 2026