Vineyard owners, Gary Schaub and Connie Tyson pose with Karen Stoehr and Linda McFate from the Eta Gamma Chapter of Phi Theta Kappa at CCC.
Planting a vineyard was the furthest thing from the minds of the Eta Gamma members at Coffeyville Community College but that would soon change with a visit from Oregon residents Gary Schaub and Connie Tyson. Connie, a certified financial planner, and Gary, who appraises and sells health care practices, were in Coffeyville to embark on a goal that would establish a vineyard northwest of Coffeyville on farmland once inhabited by the Osage Indians and later, homesteaded by Gary’s great grandparents in 1870. Gary stated, “The Indians moved south to Oklahoma and oil while my ancestors got wheat!” Phi Theta Kappa members soon found themselves at work planting approximately 1,500 grape vines in 2012 and 1,900 in spring 2013.
Gary, his mother, and Connie had already begun turning the family farmland into a wildlife habitat with native grasses such as Little Blue Stem, Big Blue Stem, Switch and Indian Grasses which provide trails and borders for quail and other wildlife. A grant was received from the Department of Agriculture working with the Independence office to participate in the Wildlife Habitat Improvement Program. The goal was to isolate the farm from the surrounding area and to provide protection and food sources, including Sand Hill Plums, for wildlife. Approximately 2,800 trees of six varieties and brush were planted including cedar on the outside and Scotch Pine, Burr and Red Oak and Sand Hill Plums on the inside. Cedar provided noise insulation while pine provided nesting material and the oaks, acorns for food. Sand Hill Plums provided both a nesting site and food supply.
The Osage Springs Vineyard had a very humble beginning. Graduate school friend Mike Still twice gave Gary and Connie a grapevine of the Mars table grape variety. Both plants died! At a family reunion, Gary learned that there had been grapes and wine making on his property, even during prohibition. Crock jars plowed up on the property seemed to verify the fact. Research revealed that at one time Kansas and Missouri were among the states highest in grape and wine production with Kansas alone having over 4,000 acres in plantings. A vineyard for the Coffeyville land made a lot of sense as the grapes don’t take that much work other than pruning, disease prevention, and harvesting as the vines are dormant all winter. Once the vines are established, they don’t have to be replanted. A vineyard would allow the land to be self-perpetuating while providing income.
Because Oregon ranks fourth in grape production, several colleges have their own vineyards and wineries with labs supported by the Oregon wine industry. To prepare for the vineyard project, Gary and Connie attended Chemeketa Community College in West Salem, Oregon, where they received their certificate for completing a two-year course in Viticulture Operations Management. The course stressed that grape vines thrive on a slope so the ground needs to drain well. A southern exposure and gravitational pull are also helpful. The Coffeyville vineyard has been named Osage Springs in honor of the area’s history while specific areas of the vineyard have been named “Dalton” and “Dalton Defenders.” Five varieties of grapes have been planted: Chambourcin, Chardonel, Marechal Foch, Norton, and Crimson Cabernet. In the vineyard expansion there is Cabernet France, Mourvédne, Petit Verdot and Nebbiolo. Expected yield from the six acres of fruit is 50-60,000 pounds. Phi Theta Kappa members are looking forward to harvesting their first grape crop in September, 2014, when the vines will reach partial maturity with full maturity in 2016. In five years, the vines are expected to yield 25 tons of wine grapes. Phi Theta Kappa members have learned that the quality of the wine is determined by the quality of grapes and the focus of the Osage Springs Vineyard is sustainability with clean fruit as disease and pest free as possible with minimal chemical intervention. Eta Gamma member Karen Stoehr stated, “Planting the grafted vines is an interesting process that gets the vines started and then pruning to develop strong trunks and deep root growth which is the goal of the first three years.”
While California is moving towards mechanized harvesting for mass production, Osage Springs is mostly a “hands on” operation that stresses quality more than quantity. There is a focus on reducing the amount of fungicides and insecticides. An ozonator which changes the water from O2 to O3 replicating the after effects of lightening is used to spray the grapes. The machine was developed in Nebraska, manufactured in Kansas and is now being introduced into the vineyards in France, Germany, and Holland.
Gary also uses a remote weather station that will allow him to monitor the temperature, rain fall, soil moisture and humidity of the Coffeyville vineyard when he is in Oregon. Gary and Connie stated “It is good to be investing here for a long time. We don’t mind to do the horrendous work at start-up so that we can get it done right.”
The grapes will be sold to the Somerset Ridge Winery near Paola. They produce excellent quality wine from their eighty acres. The winery illustrates that quality wine can be made from Kansas grapes. The grapes will be taken to the Paola winery in the cool of the early morning or by refrigeration. In addition to the help provided by the Eta Gamma members, John Alvey is the Vitis Vinifera Inspector, Zakk Lumm is vineyard technician and Karen Stoehr is Phi Theta Kappa Staff Manager. In discussing the work of the vineyard, Connie Tyson shared “I appreciate the work ethic of the Phi Theta Kappa members. They showed upon time, came prepared, got right to work, and didn’t take long breaks, and were consistent in coming to work, even when their boots got sucked into the mud!” Phi Theta Kappa is using the money received from this fundraiser to fulfill the service aspect of the Chapter’s Honors in Action Project, The Culture of Competition.
In sharing his goals for the future, Gary said he would like for the land to be self-supporting for the cost and maintenance of the entire property and to be good stewards of the land. He and Connie plan to complete the two-year wine making process program. It is an associate of arts degree program with certificates given at each of three steps: marketing, branding and labeling; replacement wine makers, and vineyard operation. Currently thirty-eight wineries and vineyards comprise a growing Kansas industry. Ancient stones revel that grapes are one of the first things cultivated and grown by humans.
Gary and Connie will have the opportunity to share their Osage Hills Vineyard with Gary’s classmates when they gather in Coffeyville October 4-5 for Dalton Defenders Days and the 50th anniversary of graduation from Field Kindley High School.