“The bud break of the grapevines is a moment of great emotion; for Sangiovese it usually occurs the first days of April.” This is how our Technical Director Massimiliano Biagi continues his account of the work in the vineyards, now focusing on Spring.

“Among this season’s operations there is weed management, working under the rows of the vineyards, which helps eliminate the unwanted plants that could interfere with the regular development of the new buds. In Spring, we also plan for antiparasitic protection, evaluating which products and strategies to use to combat fungal diseases – Peronospora and powdery mildew in particular – and harmful insects such as the grapevine moth. At Brolio we have completely eliminated insecticides of chemical origin, replaced with products and systems that act in a very targeted way and with zero environmental impact. For example, traps have been placed for the grapevine moth that monitor the presence of that insect, facilitating the choice of the best defense strategy with low environmental impact. In other vineyards, where the presence of this moth is more frequent, capsules with pheromones have been distributed for “sexual confusion”, a way to combat it in an eco-sustainable way.”

Lastly, the network of weather control units in the company allows the use of predictive models of fungal diseases, the so-called DSS, Decision Support System, which provide fundamental assistance in making the most sustainable decisions on the subject.