The annual WineGB Pruning Competition is a great opportunity for viticulturists from the UK to get together to celebrate the art of pruning. This year was the sixth event and saw the competition hosted at Clayhill Vineyard in Essex for the first time. It was great to see so many vineyard professionals come together on 7 March 2025 for the ‘Battle of the Secateurs’.
In weather which was outstanding with temperatures reaching 18 degrees as the clear blue skies framed the far reaching views across the Crouch Estuary, teams went head to head displaying their skills to the judges and the spectators. The nine teams were: Davenport Vineyards, Wiston Estate Vineyard, Ridgeview Pruning Squad, Vineworks, Vinescapes, Gusbourne Kent A, Gusbourne Kent B, MDCV Kent and MDCV Sussex
James Dodson of VineWorks, a co-founder of the event advised those taking part to “have a great day, celebrate viticulture and have fun.”
The two teams of MDCV entered the competition for the first time and there was plenty of banter between the two teams as the competition advanced. Radu Tandarescu Vineyard Manager for MDCV in Kent said one of the main motivators to enter the competition was to exchange ideas and experiences with others working in the viticulture sector. Radu, who competed with MDCV Kent explained: “The vines here are much older that the vines we prune at our site in Kent. Our vines are six to seven years old and these are 19 years old so there is more dead wood but the principles remain the same. Taking part was a great experience and we will definitely be back next year.”
The team from Ridgeview were returning for their second competition. The team consisted of Austin Ellis, Emily Payne and Lars Lundqvist. All the team agreed that the age of the vines was a challenge with a significant amount of old wood but Lars who was the cane puller said that his part of the competition was easier than in 2024 because previously the canes had been quite brittle. Austin said: “I was a little disappointed with the cuts I made on vine one. I think I went off a bit too quick and it was a challenge to find good spurs, but as a team we were more in tune and more confident together than last year.”
The competition is not limited to teams and a solo pruning event was also held. Philip Harris, Sarah Purkis, Ed Evans, Daniel Bojan, Dave Mates, Dragos Nitu, Joe Tingley, Ben Ralph, Travis Salisbury, Thomas Bailey and Rory Pinnegar were the eleven solo competitors who bravely put their pruning skills on display. Sarah Purkis entered the solo competition for the first time. “My competitive side took over,” she said with a laugh. “It is also a great opportunity to see how other people undertake the task of pruning,” she added. Sarah leads a team of 30 at Tom Bunting Vineyard Management and said she would like to return to the competition next year and enter the team event with some of her colleagues.
It was mentioned by several in attendance that the competition was a great chance for those working in viticulture, which can be quite a solitary profession, to get together, celebrate have fun and exchange ideas as the season begins. Liz Shaw visited the competition for the first time as a spectator. Travelling from Wressle Vineyard in North Lincolnshire Liz said: “We spend a lot of time working alone in the vineyard across the year so it is really important to have the opportunity to get together as a group and have fun and celebrate what we do.” Other spectators included Dr Belinda Kemp, Adrian Harris and Thorne Stopps of NIAB. As Horticultural Commercial Trials Co-Ordinator Adrian said: “There is a difference between research environments and commercial environments and the pruning competition is a great opportunity to witness the work happening in vineyards across England and Wales and to speak with those involved with vines on a daily basis helping us to keep our research commercially relevant.”
The excellent spirit in which the competition is conducted was illustrated by the friendly in-house rivalry, with both MDCV and Gusbourne entering multiple teams competing for ‘bragging rights’ as much as the trophy. Having competed in the team event both Travis Salisbury and Thomas Bailey of Wiston Estate Vineyard (who last year were part of the judging panel) then went head to head in the solo pruning event.
In charge of the competition element for 2025 was Luke Wolfe Director of vineyard management company Agro Pro. Outlining details of the competition he explained: “The team must complete five vines and when finished raise your secateurs. Unlike previous years there is no set time limit. Timing will only be used in the event of a tie.” Regarding the specific requirements of the competition Luke continued: “The judges are looking for single canes with 8-10 buds. Vines should be tied down uphill with no overlapping. These are tricky vines and we want them pruned well rather than quick so take your time to think about the cuts.”
The opportunity to celebrate vineyard skills was appreciated by everyone including the judges. Lead Judge Luke Wolfe was assisted by John Mansini (Brenley Farm), Ben Brown (Agrii), Jim Pritchard (Vineyard Manager, Chapel Down, Ashford) and Cameron Roucher (Vinescapes).
In previous years Tony Purdie who is a co-founder of the event and Vineyard Manager of Yotes Court has been the lead judge. “Tony’s were big shoes to fill” said Luke, “but we used his judging system that has been fine-tuned over the last five competitions.” Luke is well acquainted with the competition having been a judge in previous years. This year the time element was removed which was different from previous competitions and Luke explained the decision: “The difficulty level has to be appropriate to showcase the skills of the pruner. The vines were older and tricky so there was no need for a time limit.” The judges certainly had a difficult job as the level of skill on display was extremely high with Luke stating that 80%-85% of the vines were pruned perfectly. “This shows that we are highly skilled industry,” James Dodson added.
“Pruning along with other vineyard skills are vital but they are hidden in individual vineyards across England and Wales so it is encouraging to see the level of skill displayed and being celebrated at this industry competition,” said Luke.
The day was fantastic for all those who took part and it was great to see so many spectators enjoying the atmosphere and celebrating the hard work that goes on in vineyards not just at pruning but throughout the year. The event is really important for the development of the industry and James Dodson said: “I would like to say a special thank you to all the sponsors: Felco, NP Seymour, Agrii, Hadley Group, Kirkland, NFU Mutual, Pepinieres Tourette, Vineyard Magazine and VineWorks. Also thanks must go to Dale Symonds and the team at Clayhill Vineyard for providing an excellent venue to host the competition.
First place in the Solo Pruning Competition was awarded to Dragos Nitu of Gusbourne. Dragos was not only the highest scoring solo entrant but he also had the fastest time at 5 minutes and 50 seconds. “I do always work at speed and even though the competition was not timed it was still tough to choose the best spurs for sap flow,” said Dragos who last won the competition in 2020. Second place was awarded to Daniel Bojan and first-time competitor Thomas Bailey was awarded third place.
Congratulations go to the winners of the team event, with Davenport Vineyards team of Ben Connor, Ben Ralph and Mark Wilson taking first place with a time of 13 minutes and 5 seconds and 84 from a possible 90 points, placing them two points clear of Gusbourne A and Vinescapes who were tied on 82 points. Gusbourne A secured second place with a faster time of 7 minutes 10 seconds.
The winners were provided with some fantastic Felco prizes donated by NP Seymour who were there on the day to support the event. “We are pleased to be a sponsor of this fantastic event that showcases the skill and dedication of viticulturists across England and Wales,” said Claire Seymour, Sales Director at NP Seymour. Discussing the art of pruning and the competition rules Tim Sillience of NP Seymour sales team pointed out “the competition rules state that secateurs must be manual, electric pruners would be much easier to use but it would be much less competitive,” he said with a laugh that spread to the entire group.
It is important that support for this event continues to grow just as the area under vine increases. It takes a huge amount of effort to organise the event and Luke Wolfe was quick to point out that “the amount of work that James Dodson puts in is underestimated.” Wine competitions are plentiful but it is very difficult to make good wine from bad grapes and the pruning competition is a chance to shine a spotlight on the highly skilled viticulturists quietly working in vineyards across England and Wales. It is essential that this event thrives and that sponsors continue their support, that spectator and competitor numbers continue to increase and that vineyards around England and Wales volunteer to host what is a celebration of those who work so hard to improve the quality of grapes produced year on year.
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