As wine and juice grape growers in Michigan’s Great Southwest keep an eye to the sky in the delicate days of spring, there are always concerns about the impact of climate change and volatile weather. Both have stirred up considerable interest in recent weeks according to MSU Extension specialist Brad Baughman. As MSU works to keep growers informed and educated, they have slated their Annual Southwest Grape Growers’ Kick-Off meeting for April 18th.
Baughman says questions regarding how both short- and long-term changes in the climate affect the region’s ability to grow wine & juice grapes will be addressed in the session along with other Q&A opportunities to probe for expectations.
The annual Grape Growers’ Kick-Off will feature guest speaker Jeff Andresen, a Climatologist and Michigan State University Professor of Geography.
Baughman says that the short answer, for those who will be unable to attend the meeting, is that the current expectation is for warmer nighttime and wintertime temperatures and more severe rain events. He says, “It’s also expected that we’ll continue to see more year-to-year volatility, which may result in more frequent frosts and droughts.”
Dr. Andresen will provide a more detailed view of the changes in our climate that have happened so far, and what we might be able to expect in the short-term and the medium-term going forward. He will speculate on what that could mean for grape production in Michigan.
Baughman tells us that April 18th’s educational program will also include updates from Faculty Specialists on changes in insecticide and herbicide registrations, and they’ll also hear an update on the progress of the Northern Grape Project, a multi-state research initiative now headed by MSU’s Paolo Sabbatini.
The meeting starts at 2:30pm at the Southwest Michigan Research and Extension Center located at 1791 Hillandale Road in Benton Harbor. Dinner will be served after the educational program, at 5:00pm. It should be noted that 2 RUP Re-certification Credits have been requested.
Registration is $15 if received by April 11th, or $20 at the door. Those on MSU’s grape grower mailing list will receive a registration form in the mail, otherwise you can call 269-927-5674, ext. 4011 for Jamie Styburski or 4012 for Brad Baughman, to register for the event or to be added to the mailing list.
