Meet Mark Barnes: The Art of Gentle Pruning
We caught up with Assistant Vineyard Manager, Mark Barnes, to discover how pruning with patience and precision is shaping our vineyards for the future.
It’s January and mid-winter has settled across Sussex and the Artelium vineyards. As the South Downs glisten with frost, Mark and the vineyard team head out with secateurs in hand to prepare the vines for spring.
Anyone who has pulled on a pair of gardening gloves knows the importance of pruning. It’s no different with viticulture; when done well it nudges a plant towards a successful growing season. With our vines, careful pruning encourages the vines to produce the right quantity and quality of fruit come harvest.
However, over the last few years, there has been a growing appreciation of the long-term impact of pruning on the health of vines and why a gentler approach is valuable.
The Essence of Gentle Pruning
Gentle Pruning nurtures the needs of each vine. Primarily, it does this by aiming to create an undisturbed connection between root and fruit. Establishing these clear sap lines requires fewer wounds caused by cuts and snips made during pruning. This, in turn, reduces the risk of trunk disease and improves the vine’s vitality.
There is nothing new about Gentle Pruning. In fact, with 100-year-old vines, you can trace the careful pruning which sculptured them in early life. But it is a technique that was lost to time. Only recently has it been reintroduced by pioneering viticulturist Marco Simonit.
Over the last few years, Mark Barnes has embraced the forgotten art form of Gentle Pruning across the Artelium vineyards. It is an approach that requires greater patience and a deeper understanding of the vine, but one that is beginning to bear fruit.
We sat down with Mark to talk about this year’s winter pruning and the gentler approach we are using in our Sussex Vineyards.
Mark Barnes in the vineyard during harvest
What’s happening out in the vineyard at the moment?
“Winter pruning, which I class as the beginning of the vineyard cycle. It's the most critical point of our vineyard work. There are others, but to me, it's the most important. We are about two-thirds of the way through now.”
"I absolutely love being outside and in the vineyards at this time of year. It might be sub-zero some days, but the Sussex countryside is still beautiful and peaceful. Seeing the red kites and buzzards, even the odd Hare running around, it's lovely. And it’s nice to be out all day my Black Lab, Shadow.”
"Not many people know what’s happening in the vineyard over winter... but getting the pruning right can lead to fantastic results. We’re lucky at Artelium to have an experienced team lead by Sue, the vineyard manager, because there’s more to pruning than meets the eye!”
Mark with his dog, Shadow, in the Streat vineyard during Winter Pruning
Is that because of Gentle Pruning?
"Yes. It’s something we have brought in over the last few years, but you need to know what you’re doing. Shoot selection has a massive influence on the vine. When you're cutting away it is very, very easy to get it wrong... so understanding the process that you're following is key."
“What seems to be small decisions can have a massive effect on how that vine develops and works in the future and what you can do with it in the following years. So, getting it right when the vines are young like they are at Artelium is important.”
Can you see the impact of Gentle Pruning across the vineyard?
“We’re seeing positive change in the vines, particularly in terms of disease prevention and overall vine health. The way that some of the vines have developed is amazing.”
“Once you get into the habit of Gentle Pruning and taking that time to get the right shoot selection the year before, the pruning process becomes easier. It's a nice thing to be able to walk up to a vine and think, 'Oh, good. That's easy.' It's a nice feeling from vine to vine."
And what about the wine? How does pruning impact what’s in the glass?
“You can’t make good wine without good grapes. Of course, people are interested in what’s going on in the winery. But the work that we do out in the vineyard is also very important. Our aim is to make sure that vines don’t need to be replaced after 20, 30 years and can get a bit of age to them.
“So, to me, Gentle Pruning, makes perfect sense... for every reason: the longevity you can get from the vines, the lack of disease, the ease and speediness of pruning, and hopefully the quality of the vine and the grapes. And ultimately, that can only be a good thing for the wine.”
How did you find your way into the English Wine Industry?
“I worked at a wine shop after leaving school. Got my WSET qualifications, and by the time I was 21, I've done my diploma. I have no idea how to this day… but I got through those and worked at the shop for about half dozen years.
“I ended up being made redundant and completely to work at a place making medicines. I was there for 23 years, sitting down at a computer in an office, and found myself more and more looking out the window at the downs thinking: ‘I've never done it before but I need to be out there working. This office isn't just isn't doing it for me anymore.’”
“A friend suggested working in Vineyard and I thought yeah, okay. So I went to Plumpton and after speaking to them, the more I thought it made sense. I had no idea whether I could work outside, but I've loved it.”
Marks’s favourite Artelium wines:
White Pinot, 2023 - 12%
Curator Cuvée, 2018 - 12%
Makers Rosé, 2015 - 12%