Weather at Sætrevik

Author: Knut Sætrevik

For it to be possible to have a good grape year in Norway, it is a prerequisite that the weather is on our side. It is especially around blooming that one does not want rain because the rain destroys the pollen on the anthers / washes the pollen away. Most grape plants tolerate down to minus 16 – 18 degrees, some down to -40 Celsius before they encounter problems. A little wind is initially not a problem for the plants, since they manage to attach themselves well with their tendrils and are additionally fastened to wires with tying string. -But where there is wind, the heat also blows away quickly… To obtain ripe, sweet grapes in Norway, a good weather year is required. At the same time it is a prerequisite that one invests in the earliest varieties. Sætrevik lies well sheltered from the wind between two ridges. The bay faces south/southwest, so that winds from the north and east have little impact, while the westerly wind is partly halted by the ridge. In winter it normally does not get colder than 6-8 degrees below zero, but in 2009 and 2010 I recorded –13 degrees. Approx. 0.5 km from Sætrevik, Erling Folkedal runs a private weather station. The winter temperature where this weather station is located is very similar to what we have at Sætrevik, but the summer temperature is 1 to 2.5 degrees higher at Sætrevik when it is sunny, especially when it is completely calm or with wind from the north. The weather module below shows the weather in Sætravik on Stord (approx. 2 km from Sætrevik in a straight line). Local conditions at Sætrevik can be 1–2 °C warmer in sunshine and calm weather due to its sheltered location between ridges.