Mount Forest Vineyards Business Memo

Mount Forest Vineyards
To:	Staff
From:	General Manager
Date:	7/20/2014
Re:	Action Plan for Hail Storm
Comments:	It has come to my attention that we have absolutely no plan of action or system in place if there is a hailstorm in our vineyards here at Mount Forest. Being that this is a new vineyard, we cannot afford any major setbacks that a hailstorm could undoubtedly provide. Tis is why I am going to discuss our different options along with the overall plan of action we will take in order to make sure that our investment of time and effort is not wasted on these vineyards. There are some options I have found that will be more of a preventative approach followed by a plan of action. One of the most historically used methods to deter hail and protect the crops is the use ultrasound. In the past it was either through a bell that when rung it emitted a sonic wave therefore disrupting the hails ability to form resulting in minimal danger to the crops. Today shockwave cannons and rockets are used to achieve the same results and are even more effective. (Jones, 2007) This of course can be noisy but since we have no neighbors in the immediate vicinity this will be out last line of defense from hail. We will be firing and / or launching our shockwave emitting weapons during storms to aid in the protection of what will already be in place as the first line of defense against hail. In order to give our crops the best overall protection we will be using a specific type of netting for vineyards that not only protect our grapes from hail but also from birds, flying insects, harmful UV rays, and heavy winds. This system can be used as a full enclosure, a zone type system, and even a deployable curtain type system. (Smart Net Systems, 2014) At any point and time we can configure this system to match the needs of whatever stage the grapes are in in order to ensure protection throughout all stages of growth. In addition to all to all of these methods we will take out a crop insurance for unforeseeable acts of god that no one person or thing could prevent. This way if all of our contingencies fail we will be covered through insurance and will build again. The reason there is so much urgency to protect these vineyards from hail is because it can be one of the most destructive elements to a vineyard, sometimes destroying an entire vineyard in a matter of ten minutes. Hail can split the skins of grapes, shred vegetation, and even completely strip a plant depending on how dense the hail is. Physical protection of these grapes is of the utmost importance for a successful vineyard. References Smart Net Systems. (2014). Vineyard netting. Retrieved from http://www.smart-net-systems.com/agricultural-nets/vineyards-netting Jones, N. (2007). Hail! Retrieved from http://www.oxfordwine.co.uk/features/winter_07/hail.html