{"podcast":{"title":"Vineyard Underground","slug":"vineyard-underground-6280933","podcast_index_feed_id":6280933,"rss_url":"https://f364ccd0-b8ab-4504-aea4-3e21b899bc22.libsyn.com/rss","website_url":"https://www.vineyardundergroundpodcast.com/","image_url":"https://static.libsyn.com/p/assets/a/b/3/9/ab390a1f09536c4d27a2322813b393ee/Final_Vineyard_underground_1.jpg","author":"Fritz Westover","episode_count":100,"summary":"What if you could hang out with experienced grape growers, ask them about the science of grape growing, vineyard operations, and more; then take an insight or two to improve your vineyard and ultimately the quality of the wines you produce? That's what we do each week on the Vineyard Underground. Hosted by Fritz Westover –– viticulture expert more than 20 years of experience in the vineyard industry –– every episode is an in-depth look at grape growing methods, care, and even complicated matters of fertilization and pest and disease management? The goal is to provide you with an understanding of the complicated aspects of viticulture science so that experienced and even first-time grape growers will be able to understand and implement new practices in their vineyard.","last_synced_at":"2026-06-09T18:17:07.711312+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/vineyard-underground-6280933"},"episode":{"title":"077: Transitioning Vineyards to Regenerative Organic Certification with Hilary Graves","slug":"077-transitioning-vineyards-to-regenerative-organic-certification-with-hilary-graves","published_at":"2025-08-05T08:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/vineyard-underground-6280933/077-transitioning-vineyards-to-regenerative-organic-certification-with-hilary-graves","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/vineyard-underground-6280933","url":"https://f364ccd0-b8ab-4504-aea4-3e21b899bc22.libsyn.com/077-transitioning-vineyards-to-regenerative-organic-certification-with-hilary-graves","audio_url":"https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/f364ccd0-b8ab-4504-aea4-3e21b899bc22/VU_Ep077_Master.mp3?dest-id=3650511","summary":"In this episode, we welcome Hilary Graves, Vineyard and Grower Relations Manager at Booker Wines, to discuss how she successfully transitioned an Organic vineyard to regenerative organic certification. With over 20 years of field experience on California's Central Coast, Hilary brings practical strategies and candid stories about what it really takes to move beyond standard organic practices. Hilary explains the core pillars of regenerative organic certification — soil health, social fairness, and animal welfare — and why she and the team at Booker Wines chose to pursue this path. She walks listeners through how integrating multi-species cover crops, implementing low-till and no-till practices, and bringing in grazing livestock have helped improve soil structure, increase water retention, and reduce reliance on inputs. Fritz and Hilary also dig into the challenges of vineyard mechanization on steep terrain, minimizing tractor passes, and creative pest control strategies, including releasing predatory lacewings by drone to combat leafhoppers. Whether you're already farming organically or just exploring what's next, this episode offers tangible examples of how even small changes can drive long-term benefits for your soil, your business, and the environment. In this episode, you will hear: The difference between organic and regenerative organic certification How to build a diverse cover crop blend (and why 15 species might be better than five) Using a Yeomans plow to increase water infiltration without disturbing soil structure Grazing sheep for cover crop termination in a mutually beneficial partnership Why releasing beneficial insects by drone can outpace traditional sprays for pest control Follow and Review: If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to follow the podcast an…","meta_description":"In this episode, we welcome Hilary Graves, Vineyard and Grower Relations Manager at Booker Wines, to discuss how she successfully transitioned an Organic…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":3699,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/vineyard-underground-6280933/episodes/077-transitioning-vineyards-to-regenerative-organic-certification-with-hilary-graves/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/vineyard-underground-6280933/077-transitioning-vineyards-to-regenerative-organic-certification-with-hilary-graves.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}