Fish Friendly Farming

Fish Friendly Farming is a natural extension of Rodney Strong Vineyard’s commitment to sustainable farming. These practices help conserve and improve the natural creek banks along permanent and seasonal waterways in and around our vineyards.

The Russian River and its tributaries are important breeding waters for the threatened Chinook salmon and Steelhead trout, as well as the endangered Coho salmon. Over the decades, the health of these fish have been harmed by urban sprawl, invasive species, logging, gravel mining, roads and highways, water diversion and reservoirs, and agricultural practices. Fish Friendly Farming (FFF) is a voluntary opportunity for grape farmers to have a positive impact on these fish populations, protecting and improving them for future generations.

Our sustainable farming practices already include soil conservation, which is a big part of FFF. Proper construction and maintenance of vineyard roads, use of cover crops, reduction or elimination of tillage, carefully designed drainage areas, and winterization of highly erodible soil all help keep silt from clogging creeks and reducing both quality and flow in spawning areas.

Water conservation and purity are also important. Drip irrigation is a highly effective means of giving vines the little water that they may need in the summer, without wasting resources or causing erosion. Not using chemicals harmful to fish, and keeping fertilizers from leaking into the creeks is also a standard procedure we follow.

Finally, restoration and re-vegetation of our creek banks is an essential element of the FFF program. The highly invasive Arundo (giant reed), Himalayan Blackberry, and Blue Periwinkle are all non-native, aggressive plants that can take over creek banks and even choke off the creek itself. These plants provide little shade, and are ineffective in protecting creek banks from erosion. Removal of invasive plants and establishing native plants like the spice bush and wild rose help, but the tiny adolescent salmon and steelhead trout need both clean and cool water. Planting of native ash, willows, alders, maples, and other trees provides the necessary shade.

Fish Friendly Farming is an entirely voluntary program, and we are proud of our participation and intend on maintaining our certification for as long as we farm.

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