{"id":1065,"date":"2019-08-31T05:02:54","date_gmt":"2019-08-31T05:02:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/?p=1065"},"modified":"2019-09-17T05:16:49","modified_gmt":"2019-09-17T05:16:49","slug":"grape","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/2019\/08\/31\/grape\/","title":{"rendered":"Grape"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

(Vitis<\/em> vinifera<\/em>)\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is the\nEuropean grape and produces the best flavored fruit for fresh eating (it\nincludes the best seedless varieties), wines and raisins. For garden use you\nwill probably want to concentrate on table grapes (and maybe raisins). Wine\ngrapes are easy enough to grow but making good wine out of them is much more\ndifficult.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

European grapes are by far the most useful and important grape species,\nbut they require fairly specific growing conditions and are not very hardy. They\ngrow best in the less humid western states and are\nlimited in where they will grow well, by their susceptibility to pest and\ndisease and requirement for heat. If you live in an area where they don\u2019t do\nwell (a large part of the country) you may want to try growing native American\ngrapes. These are much more adaptable and can be grown in a wider range of\nclimates See below for more on these.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

History:\nGrapes and wine have been an integral part of western civilization for over\n5000 years. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

About Grapes<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hours of winter chill:\n100-500<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Size: A single vine can get\nvery big (up to 100ft), but usually pruned to 12-15ft <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Zone: 6-10 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Blooming period: Late spring<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fruiting period: September –\nOctober<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Life expectancy: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bearing age: 2-3 years<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yield: 20-50lb<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Days to harvest: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spacing: 6-8ft apart<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ease\nof growing: Grapes are ideal for the\nanally retentive gardener because you can lavish all kinds of attention on\nthem. However they are actually pretty easy plants to grow and can be quite low\nmaintenance if give them what they need. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Climate: Table grapes need lots of\nsun and heat to produce the sugar that makes sweet delicious grapes. Wine\ngrapes don\u2019t need so much heat as cooler temperatures produce more complex\nflavors. Grapes are fairly hardy (to 10\u00b0F) but can\u2019t\ntolerate extreme cold. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The southwest\n(especially California) is the best place to grow them in North America and\neven then it is important to select a variety that is adapted to your local\nclimate. Established plants are very drought tolerant, though they produce\nbetter if given regular moisture. If your climate is too cold for these types\nyou have your choice of lots of American varieties (See Varieties below).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is possible to\ngrow grapes in cooler climates by training them against a south facing wall. In\neven  colder climates you might plant\nthem in a greenhouse and let them go out through the window for the summer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soil<\/p>\n\n\n\n

pH 5.5 – 8.0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The ideal soil for grapes is\ndeep, moist, well-drained and reasonably fertile (the better the soil the\nbigger the crop). However they will grow in most soil types, so long as it is\nwell drained (they don\u2019t like wet soil at all).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Site: Grapes need lots of sun to produce sweet fruit,\nthough like most vines they will happily tolerate some shade close to ground\nlevel. The site should have good air drainage and circulation to minimize frost\nand disease. In cooler climates it should also be sheltered from the wind. If\nyour soil isn\u2019t very well drained you might consider planting on a hillside, or\non a mound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soil\npreparation: The plants will occupy their\nsite for a long time so take care when preparing the soil. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

If the\nsoil isn\u2019t very fertile you should prepare the whole growing area (not just the\nplanting hole) by single digging. or even double digging if the soil is very\ncompacted. This enables you to remove perennial weeds, loosen the soil and\nincorporate organic matter (compost or aged manure), along with wood ash and\nmaybe some standard fertilizer mix.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Planting: Make a large hole so you can spread out the roots widely. After\nplanting the plants are usually pruned back to leave 2-8 buds.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maintenance:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fertilizing: You can tell whether plants are getting enough\nnutrients by the amount of growth and fruit they make. If they are doing poorly\nyou might give additional fertilizer (use a standard mix) in spring. Don\u2019t\nfertilize late in the year as it can result in vigorous new growth that is\nvulnerable to frost. Normally the annual spring mulch application of compost or\naged manure should be adequate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Watering: Grapes are quite drought\ntolerant, but will be more productive if given regular water. Drip irrigation\nworks best because no water touches the leaves or fruit, which can result in\nfungus problem. Even if you don\u2019t irrigate them you may want to give an\noccasional deep watering, or even a single watering when the fruit are starting\nto size up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Support: Grape is a vigorous deciduous climbing vine and uses\ntendrils to cling onto vertical surfaces. The plants can get very heavy when\nladen with fruit and require a sturdy support system to keep them off the\nground.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Training: Grape growing is a serious\nbusiness and many training methods have been devised (Kniffin, Guyot and more).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pruning:\nGrapes are very vigorous and\ncan get quite tall if allowed to. They require serious pruning to keep them in\nbounds and productive. This is done in winter and is the most important annual\ntask. They bear on the current seasons wood and pruning is basically about\ncutting back to good buds that will become the following years fruiting vines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thinning: This\nis usually done to improve fruit size, but if you don\u2019t mind smaller grapes it\nisn\u2019t necessary (especially for seedless types, for drying into rasins or for\nwine). If necessary the excess flower clusters shouldbe removed in spring (how\nmany depends upon the size of the plant). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Propagation: Grapes are easy to grow from hardwood cuttings in\nwinter. In some circumstances a specific rootstock is required, in which case\nthey are grafted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pollination: Most grape varieties are self-fertile, which means\nyou only need to plant one variety. Seedless varieties are not parthenocarpic\n(producing seed without fertilization), they are actually pollinated but the\nembryo aborts and doesn\u2019t develop into a seed .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maintenance: Mostly this means pruning, but often also spraying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mulch: Grapes benefit from a mulch, to supply nutrients,\nsuppress weeds and conserve moisture. If you need to supply nutrients apply a 3\u201d\nmulch of compost or aged manure in spring. If you just want to conserve\nmoisture and suppress weeds then wood chips will work best and last longer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pests:\nGrapes are susceptible to a number of pests, but chances are you won\u2019t\nencounter them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grape berry moth<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Japanese\nbeetles<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Birds: Love the ripe grapes as much as humans. In extreme\ncases you may have to net the plants, or you could just enclose whole fruit\nclusters in paper bags.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wasps:\nEnjoy the ripe fruit too. Enclosing fruit clusters in paper bags will foil\nthem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Disease: Grapes are susceptible to a number of diseases when\ngrowing in humid climates. This is why it is so important that they have good\nair circulation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Powdery mildew<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Anthracnose<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Black\nrot<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harvest: As the fruit ripens\nit becomes less acid and much sweeter and changes color (even green grapes\nbecomes lighter and more yellowish). However even after they change color they\nstill need several weeks to develop their full sweetness. You can tell when\nthey are ready to harvest by tasting to see how good they are. When fully ripe\nthey are sweet and delicious and any seeds will be hard and brown. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the whole cluster is\nripe it is cut from the vine with secateurs. It is very important to be sure\nthey are ripe because they don\u2019t ripen any further once picked.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grapes for drying into\nraisins can be left on the vine longer as their sugar content will increase and\nthey will start to shrivel. Making raisins is a very important\nuse if you have a lot of vines and a long period of dry and sunny weather.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Storage: Fresh grapes don\u2019t keep for very long before they\nstart to ferment naturally (though see keeping in a\nbottle). They can be dried if you have the right climate and the right\nvariety.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Landscape\nuses: These attractive,\nhardy, productive and vigorous vines produce an abundance of foliage every year\nand have attractive woody trunks too. They are perhaps the single most\noutstanding food producing vine (Kiwis are their only serious competition).\nThey work as climbers on buildings and fences (or wire trellis), or can be\ntrained to grow overhead on arbors and pergolas. In Greece you commonly see\nthem growing on rooftop arbors, having been trained up from ground level. They\nalso make a good deciduous screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Varieties<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For success in\ngrowing grapes you need to choose a variety that is adapted to your climate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cooking <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Grape\nleaves are commonly used in Mediterranean cooking. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Also raisins and grape juice.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

(Vitis vinifera) This is the European grape and produces the best flavored fruit for fresh eating (it includes the best seedless varieties), wines and raisins. For garden use you will … Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1679,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[12],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1065","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-vines","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/08\/Grape.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1065","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1065"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1065\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1680,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1065\/revisions\/1680"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1679"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1065"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1065"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1065"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}