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Wildlife and farm life
People often ask us what sustainable means. Sustainable is a term used increasingly in the world of wine and different wineries and vineyards seem to have their own take on what this term represents. We’ve even seen restaurant wine lists use a scale of environmental ‘greatness’ whereby sustainable, organic and biodynamic are rungs on a ‘green’ ratings ladder - sustainable is the first level, then organic and finally biodynamic. We don’t need to get into a debate over why these terms are confusing or how it got that way but the problem did inspire me to think about examples of sustainability at Medlock Ames and how we are more interested in being a sustainable business than talking about becoming one.
To us, being sustainable has a lot to do with simple common sense. If we behave appropriately as a business and think about our choices and actions well then we have a better chance of becoming successful, staying healthy and being smart – in an environmental, social and economic sense. A good example of how we apply this common sense can be seen in how we handle the interaction of wildlife and farm life at Bell Mountain Ranch. Many vineyards use high fences to keep out wildlife such as wild pigs, deer, bobcats and mountain lions. Instead, we dedicate large parts of our estate to corridors that allow these animals to pass through the property without danger to us, them or the vines. By providing an animal thoroughfare to our local conservation area, we can limit the damage or danger to our vines and livestock that might otherwise come from trapped beasts.
Now, many vineyard owners would balk at the perceived inefficiency of not cultivating that land or using it for some sort of crop. We look at it differently. The savings we make from losing fewer grapes to pigs or the time we are saving from chasing less deer out of the vineyards can be directly attributed to the decision to dedicate parts of the ranch to wildlife. High fences may keep most animals out but those that do make it ‘past security’ find it equally hard to get out again. The smarter solution is to allow wildlife to interact with farm life by way of these corridors – a solution that is more viable and better for everyone in the long run: and that is sustainable.
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vineyard
