FEATURE DIVERSITY IN FENCING
Strainers and stays by the thousands
Marlborough has the reputation of being the biggest wine growing province in New Zealand and is fast running out of land to put grapes. The big companies are buying all the plants and now there is a shortage of plants in New Zealand. Orders are already being taken for 2024. This year has been a quiet year compared to others as we normally develop approximately between 200 to 250 Hectares in a season, which starts late August and finishes before Christmas. We can do up to 10,000 strainers and 120,000 intermediates plus around 7,000 stays in one season. The vineyard fencing trellis rows are different from your normal fencing standard practice. It starts with a digger in
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ISSUE 63 / DECEMBER 2021
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We do 3 rows at once with the digger straddling the middle row. It takes a couple of days for the crew to get into the groove of it but by the week’s end they can be hitting around 2,000 a day
most cases ripping the GPS line for your Vineyard rows, anywhere between 600mm to 900mm deep depending on plant type and intermediates the client wants to use. The plants are spaced out evenly 1.8m and are most commonly machine planted. The ones that are hand planted are done earlier in the season and are normally small blocks. Posts are 7.2m apart down the trellis row and the trellis rows can be as close as 2m
apart but normally anywhere from to 2.4m to 3m apart. Intermediate Posts are all types in Marlborough with plastic future posts coming freshly on the scene but the most favoured is the half round wood and eco trellis steel post a close second.
VINEYARD DEVELOPMENT
Renner Fencing comes on the scene first in the vineyard development season, laying outposts with the help of overseas workers. These guys work hard and can layout up to 7000 intermediates in one day, they also lay out the strainers, stays and stay blocks. The 15 Tonne digger is next on the scene with three men to help us out lifting the posts and putting them in place - which is normally marked out with a popsicle stick or a rip line marking the exact place for intermediate to go. WIRED MAGAZINE
