Growing grapes on our own is a dream for the garden enthusiast like us. There’s hardly anything more satisfying than consuming the sweet grapes you’ve grown in your yard yourself.
This comprehensive guide offers everything you need to know about growing grapes in your place. Get ready for this exciting adventure!
The precise time to plant the grapes depends on the climate and cultivars you’ve chosen to grow in your garden or field.
In Cold Region
The spring season is the best period of the year to plant and grow grapes if you reside in the colder zones.
After the last frost, grapes are given more time to develop into matured plants before winter.
In Warm Region
In the warmer regions, it is mostly suggested that grapes be planted during the fall. This way, you can get at least six weeks before the dormancy of your grapes.
Keep in mind that grapes need to have an established root system before the freezing winter!
Different varieties of grapes are made to grow in different hardy zones between 4-10. You need to choose the one made for your region.
Before you decide to plant the chosen grapes around your property, it is necessary to select the best site that has a well-developed drainage system with at least six hours of sunshine.
In the Cold Region, a southern-facing location is mostly preferred and for the southern hemisphere, north-facing slopes would be best as quoted by the professionals.
Once you’ve become aware of when and where to plant the chosen grape variety, you can begin the preparation for planting grapes.
1. Collect Grapes Cutting
Begin by collecting grape cuttings from the matured plant. If you are taking everything into your hand, it is crucial to make a proper cut for the cutting.
It has been suggested to cut between ¼ to 1 inch above the node at an angle of around 45 degrees. Make sure the cutting has 3 nodes that look like bumps.
Grapes usually require soil with a pH level between 6-7 having some sand or rock constituents. Besides that, a good drainage system is mandatory for the grapes to grow without waterlogging.
Further, it has also been quoted that grapes do not usually prefer high-nutrient soil, so it would be best if you avoid using heavy fertilizer.
Grape plants usually grow upward along the supported structure, therefore, a suitable sturdy structure like a trellis would be necessary for your grapes to grow over time.
Remember to look for robust support while choosing a trellising system!
Now that you’ve made preliminary arrangements for planting your grapes, you can begin to plant the grapes in your chosen location. Get ready for some work to do!
1. Create a Planting Hole
The planting hole for your cuttings or bare-root grapes is considered to be about 12 by 12 inches deep and wide. You need to add soil in the center of the hole and place the cutting or bare-root vine.
While placing the vine or cutting, make sure to allow the lowest bud to be just above 3 inches of the soil surface.
2. Plant the Cutting
After making the planting hole, place the cutting into it, ensuring the lowest bud is above the soil surface. Once you've planted the cuttings, you need to firmly press the soil around the base of the new plant.
In addition to that, the spacing of about 6-15 feet is usually accepted between each of the cutting for different types of cultivars.
Bare-root Grape Vine
If you want to go with the bare-root grapevines to grow grapes in your yard instead of cuttings, they need some soaking in water for about 4 hours before planting in the soil.
3. Good Watering
You should know that grape plants do not necessarily require heavy watering. Once, you’ve planted your cuttings, you need to give them good hydration but it should be minimized over time.
Keep in mind to water regularly directly at the base of the grape plants, ensuring maximum water gets absorbed by the root.
You can choose to install a drip irrigation system if you have a large farm for the grapevines.
4. Pruning Grape Plant
During the first year, it has been recommended to prune all the fruits and vines excluding the strongest branch of your grape plant, allowing the younger vines to develop more rigid.
Over time as the plant develops stronger branches, you can prune 90% of the new growth following the local pruning practices.
Remember to perform pruning during the late winter, choosing a period when there is no longer severe cold and risk of frosting.
5. Mulching
Mulching should not be avoided for any type of grape plant. But provide only a thin layer of mulching around the base of the plant so that maximum sunlight reaches the root system.
If you are into grape plant care, you should begin by understanding the light requirement of grapes. Grapes prefer the sun throughout the day for at least 6-8 hours.
Being a sun-loving plant, grapes are certain to project peculiar behavior upon receiving inadequate sunlight. Lighting falls under the high-priority grape plant care aspect.
Soil
Soil is another important factor for the grape plant care. It has been recommended to use moist, nutrient-rich soil having sand constituents with a good drainage facility.
Further, it’d be good if you allow your grape plant to grow in the soil having a pH between 6-7.
Water
It would always be good to remain on the safe side and water your grapes only after the top few inches of soil is dry. Keep in mind not to overwater your plant!
Make sure to adjust the frequency of watering depending on the weather conditions. If your plant is showing unusual behavior such as discoloration of leaves, you should reconsider the watering practices immediately.
Grapes thrive in the ideal temperature between 77ºF and 90ºF and prefer average humidity throughout the growing period.
Remember to offer the ideal growing conditions for your grapes to thrive without bringing much change in the temperature and humidity.
Fertilizer
Heavy fertilizing is not necessary for your grape plants, but still during the first 1-3 years, applying a nitrogen fertilizer in the early spring may give a boost to your plant.
Once the plant has matured, you do not necessarily require fertilizing your plant.
Pruning
You should know that pruning is very crucial for your grape plants. Annual pruning is what determines the ripeness and maturity of the grapevines.
Pruning grapes in home gardens is highly recommended around March when winter is about to end or early spring is in the air. You need to eliminate all the fruit-bearing canes before the first growth in the early spring.
Pest Control
Although grape plants are naturally hardy and there’s no need for extreme worry about pests and diseases, you still want to be alert for some pests like vine moths and aphids.
You may need to perform regular weeding and maintain proper airflow to look out for pests like aphids on plants. If the infestation is very high, you should seek professional assistance.
Propagating grapes simply means multiplying grape plants. You can allow your grapes to offer the younger ones by following the below-mentioned instructions:
Start by selecting a 12-18 inch stem cutting from your grape plant which should be one year old.
The dormancy in the fall is considered the best period for propagating grape plants.
Make sure to get prepared with well-drainage soil in your garden bed.
Place the fresh cuttings in the rooting hormone.
It has been suggested to place the cutting in such a way that three buds are under the ground and one is above the ground.
Soil should be firm around the base of the cutting, keeping it moist but not wet.
You will start to see the actual growth of your grape plant in the coming spring.
Make sure to plant more than the required cuttings because many of them might not survive as anticipated.
You should know that for the first 1-3 years, matured and edible grapes are less likely to be produced. The only way to assess the harvesting stage is by tasting the grapes.
Yes, you need to taste your grapes for ripeness, and if they are sweet, you should know, they are ready for harvesting. Unfortunately, the color and size of the grapes are not enough to indicate their ripeness.
Further, grapes are found to stop ripening once they are harvested.
How to Harvest Grapes?
Equip yourself with clean and sharp cutting tools such as pruning shears to make a perfect cut while harvesting your grapes.
While cutting the bunch of grapes, ensure the remaining grapes and the vines are not damaged.
You should avoid applying extensive force to the delicate grapes, they can get damaged pretty easily. Also look out how to store grapes after harvesting, which will be helpful.
