How to Start a Vineyard, Part 26: Quick Saturday Action

It was supposed to be a quick Saturday operation. The last spraying of the year. Three hours max. Instead, it’s already seven o’clock and there’s no end in sight.

It started, as usual, with preparation. First, connect the sprayer to the tractor before filling the tank, as it’s too heavy to maneuver when full.. Done. Then, fill the tank with water and protective agents proportionally.. Done. Now, connect the sprayer cables to the in-cab control. Done again. Finally, the last and easiest step: test the sprayer. And then, the flap, a fiasco, the cabin controller won’t even blink. My father-in-law and I figure out that the fuses are fine, as are the connectors on the connector, but the power outlet doesn’t work, simply for no reason. We ponder and settle on switching the power supply from the nearby outlet. Finally, it’s there, it works, but as if nothing had happened, two hours later.

I finally reach the vineyard. The vines have grown so much that I’m no longer sure spraying every third row is enough. Maybe I need to spray more often. I step out of the booth and touch the leaves in the further rows. However, the vines absorb the water so quickly that after a while, there’s no trace of moisture, even in the row closest to me.

I finally decide to go every other row and start. After a while, however, I realize that now that we’ve already placed the acacia outer posts, which aren’t always straight, entering the rows becomes problematic. I have to proceed slowly, counting centimeters, and time is running out. Now, even turning into every fourth row requires a reverse. But I somehow trudge through the rows at a snail’s pace, only occasionally jumping out of the cab to reattach a broken vine or move a leaning pole.

But nothing’s easy this day. I still have ten rows to go, and suddenly the pressure gauge drops. The little ball on the sprayer indicates no water. I know, it’s because of all those passes every other row. Oh well, I have to go back two kilometers along the dirt roads to my in-laws’ farm and satisfy the dragon. The cabin echoes with “nothing’s changed” Tricky, I hum the chorus quietly.nothing’s changed, I still feel the same.”

I add water. Now I quickly measure out the three sunscreens and, to speed up the process, pour them all into one mineral water bottle. However, something happens because the liquid thickens. But I think,nothing’s changed, I still feel the same“I cut the bottle with a knife and put the jelly in the sprayer. It will definitely dilute in the water.

Another two kilometers over rocks and dirt holes, back in the vineyard. I drive into the row, turn on the controller, and the pressure won’t budge; the sprayer only spits out air. I check the equipment, but subconsciously I know the cause. It’s that jelly that’s clogged the lines. There’s nothing left to do but pour out all the liquid, go home, and rinse the tank. I know the stones along the way by heart, the larger ones greet me from afar; soon I’ll start giving them names.

The indispensable father-in-law comes to the rescue. He knows where the filter is, and it’s indeed stuffed to the brim with debris. More water, more protective equipment (this time separately). One more test, just in case. These endless ten rows are haunting me, just like the lyrics to Tricky’s next song:it bothers me, it bites me, it stinges me, it cracks me“I decided I’d finish and nothing would stop me. More rocks, more holes. For the third time I enter the rows, praying for normalcy. I spray for ten minutes. At the bottom I fall into the mud, the tractor gets stuck, front, back, front again, a dozen times, all five centimeters from the fence. But it’s there, it gets out, I finish spraying too, what a relief.

A fairytale sunset looms on the horizon. I decide I need to get away from it all for a moment, get some fresh air, and capture this bloody sky on film. After all, nature is the main reason I’m here. I drive up to the highest point of the vineyard for a better view. I drag myself out of the cabin with the last of my strength, grab my iPhone, and press the button. All I see is a black screen with a dead battery icon.