A couple of firsts – 2013 is the first time we have had to net in the rain. A couple of times it poured and one such event was bordering on tropical. Consequently, we got wet as shags and the nets weighed about three times their normal weight.
The second first is we used Kone elevator cables to hold the nets on the ground and hopefully exclude all bird life from entering. No, there are no elevators resting at the bottom of their shafts – these are used cables, slightly oily but perfectly intact. After vintage, the cables will be positioned next to the vines in the void and stay there until next season. Hopefully, they won’t lose too much flexibility. Last year we lost about $15,000 worth of fruit through bird damage – even fully netted!