Courtesy photo.
SANTA MARIA — With no Ag students on campus at Pioneer Valley High School, about a dozen staff members recently rolled up their sleeves and hit the small vineyard behind the softball field. The yield for the varietals included 200 pounds of chardonnay and 120 pounds of pinot noir. Syrah will be harvested in October.
“Normally I go out to the vineyard to harvest with my classes and it ends up a fun experience for them to see the end product,’’ said agriculture/FFA teacher Hector Guerra. “This year with not having the students around, I figured I would invite the staff to join in on the fun.’’
This would have been the last cycle of the viticulture portion for students. They would have started work on chemistry and then marketing. The wine leaves the property at inoculation time.
“I enjoy showing the students the endless opportunities and possibilities of Agriculture,’’ Guerra added.
The vineyard was planted about five years ago thanks to industry donations.