Sustainable Agriculture
At Sula, we’re not just focused on making great wine: we’re focused on making great wine well. And since great wine starts with the environment, it’s in our best interest to take good care of it in the long run.Our sustainable agricultural practices are environmentally friendly, economically sound, socially responsible, and mindful of the earth’s limited resources.
Vermicomposting
Pomace – grape skins, seeds, and stems that remain after crush – can constitute up to 30-40% of the original harvest yield. Instead of wasting it, we feed it (along with other waste packaging material and organic scraps) to worms in a process known as ‘vermiculture’ or ‘vermicomposting’. Squeal if you must, but these workaholic wrigglers are an environmentally conscious farmer’s best friends. They chew their way through the mix to produce a crumbly black compost that is odourless and rich in organic matter, which we then use back on the vines as fertilizer.At present, our home-made organic compost meets 80% of our fertilization needs. Over time, our aim is to replace ALL chemical fertilizer with a mix of vermicompost and farmyard manure.
Watershed Management
A 3-phase watershed management project that aims to harvest rainwater and excess irrigation runoff is currently underway at our Dindori vineyards. The water is harvested using bore-wells and collection ponds constructed at the lowest point of the vineyard slopes. We expect to reduce our dependency on water from the Karanjivan dam while recycling water that would otherwise go to waste.
Integrated Pest and Nutrition Management
The heavy application of chemical pesticides on vines can lead to problems of residue as well as posing health hazards to farm workers. To counter these issues, we are in the process of implementing integrated pest & nutrition management (IPM) systems in our vineyards. We do not use banned chemicals, and have trained all farm workers applying pesticides in health and safety measures. Supervisors are trained to implement these measures. We are also experimenting with organic pesticides which, if successful, will be used on the whole farm in phases.
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