Rognage - Trimming the vines

The vines grow at an amazingly fast rate at the peak of their growing season and their growth needs to be kept in check. This is done by a rogneuse - in our case this is attached to the front of the tractor with a total of 10 large blades housed in a frame that is controlled from inside the tractor with a joystick. The blades rotate and cut the vines into a nice square 'hedge' shape. The rogneuse appears to be difficult to use (not to mention intimidating) but actually, while tricky, it isn’t too bad once you’re used to the controls. The vineyard looks fantastically neat when the job is complete.