We were proud to present this year’s inaugural First Leaf award to Tom Aspitarte of Martha’s Vineyard of Skamania County for their exceptional first year efforts.
Martha’s Vineyard of Skamania County is a lovely two-acre site on a 20-acre farm along the Washougal River with 16 acres of ecological infrastructure including a beautiful riparian area and woodlands.
During his first year in the LIVE program, Tom asked many questions, engaged in the inspection process cheerfully, and submitted his report to healthily earn his certification in 2024.
He offered his site as an open inspection for his region’s winegrowers, including one Southwest Washington grower who also just got certified for the first time in 2024. He has offered to showcase this work at the region’s Savor tasting event and continues to promote it to his fellow growers.
Thank you Tom and team for your exemplary work.
Oak Hubs
This spring, LIVE partnered with a group of environmental science students from Willamette University to distribute oak saplings to our members. Their group, called Growing Oaks, was formed to promote the growth and protection of the Oregon Oak. This spring collaboration was the beginning of a...
Vineyard Standards Updates for 2022
Each year, LIVE's Joint Technical Committee meets to review our vineyard standards and discuss key pest determinations, testing requirements, and new chemistry evaluations. Updates for the 2022 growing season are below and the final documents are at livecertified.org/certify. Contact LIVE staff to be connected with your Regional Tech Committee chair.