MISSION

Plant the Vine uses L.A.'s viticultural past, as well as hands-on experience in tending native and historic vines, to inspire young people to interpret the city's history in a critical light, see themselves reflected in it, and know that they have a role to play in shaping its future.

VISION

Plant the Vine envisions a tapestry of communities who, with knowledge of the city's grape-growing past, can imagine a greener and more just Los Angeles.

INTERPRETING HISTORY THROUGH THE VINE

The science of Plant the Vine rests on the pioneering work of grape geneticist Carole Meredith, who is credited with discovering the origins of the Zinfandel and Cabernet Sauvignon grapes. In 2012, building on her work, scientists from UC Davis examined the Vina Madre, the oldest living vine in Los Angeles. They discovered that the vine, long thought to be of the Spanish winemaking variety, was actually instead a spontaneous hybrid from the late 1800s that was used mostly for landscaping.

The hybrid grape, whose progenitors were the local native grape and the Spanish winemaking grape, disrupted the long-held romantic notion that the Vina Madre was a direct link to L.A.'s colonial winemaking past. But it replaced that notion with one that is culturally more inclusive, one that connects us to the Indigenous past.

Plant the Vine extrapolates from this discovery a unique chronological sequence of grapes -- the native, the Spanish and the hybrid. It uses this sequence to interpret early L.A. history from the perspective of those who worked in the vineyards, giving students an understanding in which they see themselves as agents of change.

Your tax-deductible donations will be used to:

Develop curricula for programming
Create signage and informational recordings for the vineyard in the Los Angeles State Historic Park
Maintain the vineyards that have already been planted
Fundraising, outreach and events

WILLOWBROOK COMMNUNITY VINEYARD

The Willowbrook Community Vineyard was planted 5 years ago. The vines were planted in the method employed at the time by the Spanish, bush-trained and spaced eight feet apart. Plant the Vine helps maintain the vineyard and arranges field trips to view it. In an area of the city that was once covered in vineyards, it is the first to be planted in many years and the only one featuring the historic Mission grape.

WHY GIVE

Your donations will go towards:

Organic pest and blight control
Amendment and Regeneration of soil
Solar power for irrigation and security
Irrigation system
Soil, fertilizer and new plant material
Winemaking workshops so folks can get their hands (and feet!) wet as home winemakers

Learn more: https://www.plantthevine.org/our-projects

Subscribe: https://www.plantthevine.org/

Follow: https://www.instagram.com/plantthevine/?img_index=1

Thank you for becoming a Friend of the Vine and making Los Angeles a greener, more livable place to live!

Plant the Vine

Our Roots Are in the Vines

Team Members