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Feature Article
Dead shoots on a Chardonel vine in Rocheport, MO, a victim of the"Easter massacre." [Photo courtesy of Andy Allen, University of Missouri Extension]
When Bad Weather Happens
to Good Grapegrowers
The Easter Freeze of 2007 - Midwest Grape Growers Recover, Prepare, and Learn.
by
Tim Pingelton
February 19, 2008
rape growers, farmers, and journalists used strong words in describing the freeze damage sustained by vineyards in the Midwest in early April of 2007: Tragedy!, Devastation!, Massacre!. After March ended with the highest temperatures for that time period in over 100 years (according to the University of Missouri’s Institute for Continental Climate Viticulture and Enology department (ICCVE)), April began with the coldest temperatures for that time period in over 100 years. March’s warm temperatures promoted early bud break in grape vines (especially in Arkansas and the lower Midwest), and 5 days of below-freezing temperatures killed those buds and caused some trunk splitting.
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