|
|
||
|
|||
The grape plant which you receive from us is a rooted cutting. It is a rather dead-looking, tangled vine with roots. You must sometimes look carefully at a grape cutting to determine which end is “up”. The above-ground or stem portion will be cut back to 1-4 buds. The plant should be set into the ground at a sharp angle, almost lying down, with the crown of the plant (where the top cane meets the roots) at ground level, and the stem (the part with the buds on it) above the ground. Planting the cutting in this tilted position, rather than straight up, will encourage double or multiple stems to grow up vertically from a low horizontal main trunk. If one stem dies, there is another to back it up. A tilted main trunk will also make it easier to bend plants to the ground each Fall so that you can cover them with mulch for the winter months. The grape plant will take about a year to become established. After this, a trellis should be constructed to support the plant.
In milder climates, many grape growers do their pruning in the Fall, but Northern growers are better off to leave all excess growth on the plant over the winter, so that there are more live canes to choose from if the plant suffers winter injury. Annual pruning to renew the plant should be done in March or early April while preparing to fasten the canes to the trellis. In addition, cold-climate growers should encourage “low heading,” or sidebranching as close to the ground as possible, allowing more of the plant to enjoy the protection of snow cover during the winter months.
A grape trellis is a simple structure consisting of several fenceposts supporting two main wires. A branch from the main stem of the grape plant is run in each direction on both wires for a distance of 2 to 4 buds and tied to the wire. All other canes should be removed. The first trellis wire should be positioned about 1.5 to 2 feet from the ground, supporting the lowest pair of “arms” emerging from the main trunk. The top trellis wire should hold a second pair of “arms” about 3 to5 feet from the ground. Even though our grape varieties are among the most cold hardy cultivars known, growers in Zones 3-4 can help their grapes winter over by untying the branches from the trellis each Fall, laying the plants down on the ground and and covering them with hay, straw or leaves. You may have to do a bit of Fall pruning in order to get the canes off of the trellis.
Grape plants should be spaced 6-8 feet apart in the arbor. They prefer a rich, well-drained soil with a pH of about 6.8. Keep weed competition to an absolute minimum by mechanical or hand cultivation and generous mulching.
The 64-page booklet, Growing Grapes in Minnesota, prepared by the Minnesota Grape Growers Assn., covers the subject of northern grape culture in detail. It can be ordered from our catalog or website.