Saumur-Champigny celebrates biodiversity with a paper chase today

Today the Saumur-Champigny producers have set up un jeu de piste (paper chase) to discover biodiversity in the vineyard through six stages. The route can be covered by any non-motorised means – on foor, bike, horseback or by carriage. Meeting point is the car park of the Cave Cooperative at Saint-Cyr-en-Bourg. There is also a dinner and concert with vignerons this evening in a cave troglo from 19h. Details here plus a video which explains the concept.   

I hope the Saumur-Champigny producers will use this as an opportunity to demand that La Ville de Saumur gets the biodiversity message and stops using weedkiller on the vines right in front of the Château de Saumur see here from early January 2011.  

Orange vines@Saumur: a curious way to celebrate biodiversity

Use of weedkiller@Château de Saumur

The Syndicat of Saumur-Champigny producers is proud to be championing biodiversity:

'Le vignoble de Saumur Champigny est la première Appellation Contrôlée à s’être engagée dans un programme de biodiversité sur l’ensemble de son territoire. Les viticulteurs se sont unis pour implanter un réseau de Zones écologiques Réservoirs, à travers les neuf communes de l’appellation. Les Zones Ecologiques Réservoirs ou ZER sont des espaces « non cultivés », sans apports de pesticides et de fertilisants (haies, abords enherbées, murets…).' See here.

Unfortunately they appear not to have told La Ville de Saumur, who I gather look after the vines right of the Château beside the parking where many thousands of visitors stop during a year. Here on strips close to the vines weedkiller has been used as the grass has that tell-tale agent orange colour. I hope the Syndicat will point out to La Ville that while they may think that using weedkiller makes the vines look neat and tidy, it is counter to the message of biodiversity that the local producers are trying to promote.