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Feature Article
“There are some row-crop farmers who thought they had a section of land that really wasn’t suitable for growing corn and soybeans - it had a slope to it or the soils weren’t good for planting traditional Iowa crops - so they looked into putting a little bit of grapes in."
The New Future of Iowa Grape Growing and Winemaking
“It’s a new era for the winegrowers here in the state..."
~Dave Cushman, Jr., President of the Iowa Winegrowers Association
by Tim Pingelton
March 19, 2009
s George Fischer, owner of Fischer Vineyards in Norwalk, Iowa, explains it, “Iowa was one of the largest wine producers in the country at one time, and then Prohibition put us out of business. The next thing that happened was a horrible storm in 1940 - the Armistice Day Storm - that killed every apple tree and grape vine in Iowa. And then they started them back again and 2,4-D killed them. Now, we’re on our 3rd or 4th attempt.” 2,4-D is a growth regulator herbicide widely used in Iowa corn production. It is easily dispersed over great distances by the wind, and the effects on vines vary from wilted leaves to vine death.
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