# Anyone have their own vineyard?



## smurfe

Does anyone here have their own vineyard and grow your own grapes, or fruits for wines for that matter? I have been thinking of planting some Muscadine vines as these are the only type I can realistically grow in South Louisiana without basically setting up camp next to the vines and nurturing them every minute. I would like to hear about your experiences if you grow your own crop.

Smurfe


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## Sacalait

Really depends on what you classify a vineyard. 29 muscadine vines


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## smurfe

Muscadine said:


> Really depends on what you classify a vineyard. 29 muscadine vines



I consider a vineyard growing your own vines and making your own wine from your own fruits in an amount that satisfies your needs. I bet you can get a lot of wine out of 29 vines. I was considering planting 4-5 vines. Enough to make maybe 2-3 five gallon batches a year.

Smurfe


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## dloftus

*I have started a vineyard*

I have started my own vineyard and will be growing mostly fresh fruit muscadines, but the cross pollinators I'm using are good for wine making. That's why I joined this list ... to get info on wine making. I have done beer in the past and a few wine kits, but not from fresh grapes (well they are frozen right now waiting to be processed).

Right now I'm up to about 190 vines and I'll be planting another 120 this year. At that point, I'll be about half way planted. I'm looking for my vineyard to help out with retirement income. I retire in about 4 years and I wanted to get started so I would have something to sell by the time I finally leave this job. 

Here are two galleries of photos of the vineyard. If you have any questions, just let me know, but I'm still learning myself.

http://www.pbase.com/dloftus/vineyard
http://www.pbase.com/dloftus/vineyard_year_3


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## FentonCellars

Funny, I've made my own wine now (1 batch) and read WineMaker magazine and sometimes I wonder how I put my pants on in the morning. It dawned on me while sitting in bed reading next to the Mrs. that my parents in southern VT have wild concord grapes growing out of control next to the front lawn. Who knows how much it creates per year, but heck, I will be asking for them this next year that is for sure! 

So, with my new realization, how much grapes does it take for a 5 gallon batch of wine?


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## Sacalait

I think a lot depends on the acid content of the grapes. I know you can't make a pure muscadine wine because of the high acid content. You might want to go to Jack Kellers recipe site for more info.


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## smurfe

I was gonna suggest Jack Kellers site as well. From what I read there, it takes 6-12 pounds per gallon depending on the type of wine you want in the end. Dry vs. dessert. Here is a link to check.

http://winemaking.jackkeller.net/reques10.asp

Smurfe


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## lockwood1956

I have my own vines planted

I have Rondo, Recichensteiner, and 1 each of...Pinot noir, chardonnay, triomphe, siegerebbe and black hamburgh 64 vines in total (started out with 75) First crop due this year)

see here
http://www.winesathome.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?t=1021

really exited about the 2007 vintage.

We don't have the rodent/deer/racoon problems that you have over there. We also have less trouble with botrytis, powdery and downy mildew too. However we have more problems with not enough sunshine hours.


OH and I have one Cabernet vine under glass that I took cuttings from last yeasr, and hope to have several offspring to plant next year.


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## cpfan

OOOH...siegerebbe...I'm jealous. There's a couple of wineries in the North Okanagan (BC Canada) that do this grape. Nice gewurztraminer like wine. Not sure when (or even if), I'll make it there this year.

Steve


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## bruno

I live in northern Michigan and have 2 acres I'm thinking of converting to a vineyard. I'll be retiring in approx 3 years. Still in the exploration states, but my plot is gentle north to south sloping and was previously a corn field, but hasn't been worked in about 10 years. Looking for all the start-up advice I can get.


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## Kywinedoc

Greetings from Kentucky,
I thought I would jump right in here. I've got a three year old, one acre vineyard but had been using stake support and this year decided to put up a trellis. Believe me, it would have been easier to do the trellis when the vines were young. Too late now, we just have to make some adjustments. The posts are up and I have most of the equipment. I've been researching the types of tensors and am still a little confused about that. 
Smurfe, You might go online to your university department for recommendations on the best varieties to try. I went to our University site and got great info on the best varieties including their disease resistance, how to plant, use of the fruit, etc. I now have 28 varieties that I am experimenting with. Less than one third are mature enough to get grapes this year, so for most of them I won't be much help until next year at least.
I do have a question. Have any of you found a cheap way to keep deer out? I'm about ready to get my bow out of storage and have some fresh meat this winter. We do have to protect these endangered plant species of ours.
Andy H


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## openwheel

I just planted 50 Riesling and 50 Shiraz vines in central Kentucky. To bad I will not get anything out of them for 3-4 years. Lucky I have a friend that has mature vines. I will more than likely add 50 - 100 vines next year.


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## bruno

For the deer problem, check out deerbusters.com. They sell vinyl type deer fences, the cost seems reasonable. I ordered samples of the fencing on their website and it looks like something I may go with.


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## B-well4200

*Grapes In Georgia?*

Hey, I am in middle GA with terrible humidity. Is it possible to grow grapes in this type of climate? Is there anyone from this region who has had any success?


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## Racer

I'm in Il. so I can't help you too much. http://www.georgiawinecountry.com/main.asp See if any of the vineyards are close by and check them out. Most vineyards around me are real easy going about answering questions on starting to grow grapes.


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## bruno

I spent this summer prepping my field for planting next May. For the deer fence, I used 12 gauge wire strung at one foot intervals up to 7-8' on the average. The wire was somewhat invisible, so I hung yellow construction tape at intervals so the deer could see it. So far, not a single deer has breached my perimter. The first night after stringing the north-south run, it looks like a deer ran into the wire, and I had to make some adjustments. After that, I added the yellow tape, and now they know it's there and to avoid the area.


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## kitten

i never considered what i have a vinyard.....especiall as im just starting this... but i have raspberry, blackberry bushes i plan to make wine from. i have wine grapes grownig and will find out what variety they are this summer, lots of elderberry thaat i will make wine from and a nice size strawberry patch that is screaming to be fermented. my grandmother.. who lives next door, also has apple trees, cherry trees, peach trees, red and black currants, rhubarb, and 2 concord vines that she told me i am welcome to ferment at will.... so i will be busy just trying to keep up with everything


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## Sacalait

Sounds more like you have a *wineyard rather that a vineyard. I've got muscadines (30), pear trees (4), blackberries (many) and pomegranate (40 immature plants).*


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## kitten

hey i just like to have all my fruity bases covered lol


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## myakkagldwngr

I hope to plant a few vines here at home. I understand that you can't grow many varieties here in Florida. I would at least like to grow enough to have some of my own grapes to use while making other blends.
Any suggestions?


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## Sacalait

Muscadines grow just fine in Florida, in fact the Un. of Fla. has a large program centered around the growing of these vines.


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## jwthomas

Bruno i'm with you there i'v got five acres and i'm going to plant about two acres of it with vines i'm also in the start up stage my land like your's was corn fields at one time and the under grown springs let any thing grow. so good luck to you and your vineyard and to all of us on our vineyard.


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## Racer

jwthomas said:


> Bruno i'm with you there i'v got five acres and i'm going to plant about two acres of it with vines i'm also in the start up stage my land like your's was corn fields at one time and the under grown springs let any thing grow. so good luck to you and your vineyard and to all of us on our vineyard.



Have you decided on the variety(s) you'll be planting yet?


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## jwthomas

i don't know. looking at the best spot to plant out hear. looking at a few vineyards to fined out what grows best.


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## bruno

My how time flies. It's actually over a year since I last posted on this thread.

I got my 1500 vines in this spring. Purchased from Double A. I only lost 26 plants by August which Double A will replace next spring.

My two biggest concerns have been the deer and weeds, but both have been brought under control. The new electric fence does wonders after the deer learn what it is.

For the weeds, they need constant attention. I have bare earth isles between the rows, and cultivate them periodically with a 3-pte. roto-tiller. Within the rows, I spray with Credit Extra with a 4-gallon back-pack sprayer. Thinking of experimenting next spring with a clover-type or orchard grass ground cover. Anyone have any comments on a good ground-cover?

We had a wet spring, then a fairly dry summer. I did not install a watering system because my ground is mainly clay, and holds the moisture quite well. When it did get dry, I did some spot watering using my 30 gallon tow behind sprayer, only watering the rows that were looking a bit stressed. 

In the last 3-4 weeks, we have had unseasonably warm temps, and some rain. It has been amazing to see the spurt of growth that these conditions brought on. 

With the vineyard in reasonably good shape, on to some other fall activities. Just started 5 gal of plum wine, and 2 1/2 gal of pear.


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## Racer

It's good to hear you've had a pretty good year establishing your new vines.As far as what to grow for a covercrop? You need to look at how your site and vines are doing. You said you have clay soil that holds water good. Does that mean that you have a vigorous site? If you do I'd stay away from nitrogen fixing covercrops and go with something to compete with the vines for the water and nutrients. I'm planning on going with grass in row next year because I'm still having over vigorus conditions even after dividing the canopy on my vines.


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## myakkagldwngr

Bruno, you don't put up fences to keep the deer out!!! You eat the deer.. 
Wouldn't some venison go great with a good red wine??


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## bruno

I don't have overly vigorous soil - the soil test I had done indicated I needed to add N which I did in the spring. So I guess I could use a cover crop that adds back Nitrogen.

As far as the deer, I have more venison in the freezer than I can handle now. Just wish they would go away.


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## DesertDance

We have a small backyard vineyard that we just started last year. I ordered a bunch of cuttings from UC Davis last june, so hopefully we can increase our vines. We live in the hot southern California desert, and this is NOT a wine grape growing region, BUT we are giving it a try with vines that grow in similar climates in Greece, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Chile, and Australia. We have Touriga National, Mourvedre, Tempranillo, Cabernet Savignon clone 08, Malbec, and Perlette. On order, Syrah, Alicante Bouschet, Assirtico, Daphnata, Mandelaria, Charbono, Primitivo, Cinsault, Zinfandel. Our vines are trellised on a cordon spur trellis, and on a drip system. The newer vines will be container grown due to lack of space and head trained. We will be doing a lot of blends and looking forward to it. Until our vines are mature enough to produce, we are practicing on fruit wines.


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## Wade E

Have any pics of container grown! Ive never heard of this. Do they stay in there and for how long?


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## Dhorton

My father owns ~20 acres in northeast TX, which has pear trees, wild muscadine grapes and dewberries, I have yet to make it down to harvest any of the fruit to make into wine...


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## DesertDance

Wade E said:


> Have any pics of container grown! Ive never heard of this. Do they stay in there and for how long?



Desperate People do Desperate things! Our little vineyard is hidden from the prying eyes of the dreaded homeowners association, and we need more vines to get enough grapes to make our wine. They could make me rip out my vineyard because vines are not on the approved list, so I went to a lot of trouble to establish religious reasons (Biblical quotes in a word doc) for vineyards if that ever happens. I'll claim "religious persecution!" Aside from that, they can't say a word about what I have in containers.

I searched the web and found it can and has been done. Vines can even be bonsaii'd! I am going to contain my vines in those smart root encouraging pots made from landscape fabric. They will need re-potting every couple years, but that should be no problem. This picture is of Head Trained vines that are very mature.


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## skhnmh

Good to see you on the boards, since WP went down...

I started a Bonsai pinot noir just a few days ago. Got a great container that was supposed to be a grape themed casserole but cracked during the last firing. I'm excited to see it "take root." Cheers.


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## DesertDance

*Bonsai Grape Vines*



skhnmh said:


> Good to see you on the boards, since WP went down...
> 
> I started a Bonsai pinot noir just a few days ago. Got a great container that was supposed to be a grape themed casserole but cracked during the last firing. I'm excited to see it "take root." Cheers.



Hammered!! Very nice to see you here. I just told gregmg about this site. How old is the vine you Bonsai'd? I hope you post pictures of your Bonsai Pinot Noir! How very cool!!

Good luck with it!

Suzi


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## Midwest Vintner

we have ~20-25 wild vines, but there's just too much poison ivy and the grapes are at the tops of 20+ ft trees! we do have 2 concords on the property, but something (most likely birds or deer) ate them well before they became very ripe! looking into some kind of netting. we also have lots of wild black raspberries, that are also hard to get without gettion poison ivy. 

is there any way to get rid of the posion ivy and not hurt the vines or raspberries???? i hate that stuff!


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## skhnmh

We don't get much poison ivy out here, but I do have to keep after the Himalayan Blackberries. I've found that Brush-Be-Gone works the best, but don't get it on the leaves of the grapes. Round-up is a popular herbicide used under grapevines in a vineyard as well, again use care to keep it off the growing parts (leaves and fruit) of the vines.


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## DesertDance

*Container Grown Grapes*



Wade E said:


> Have any pics of container grown! Ive never heard of this. Do they stay in there and for how long?


 From what I've read, they can stay in containers for years as long as you re-pot and freshen the growth medium. I plan on using "root pruning" pots. Google that and you may be surprised.

Hopefully I earned the right to post a picture. I've now posted 12 times. I'll try again! Grapevines, head trained, in containers:

http://www.spanishplants.co.uk/docs/gallery/fruit/Vitis vinfera (grape)-90L-group.jpg


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## Wade E

Ok they look cool but they can possibly produce very much like that!


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## DesertDance

Wade E said:


> Ok they look cool but they can possibly produce very much like that!



Here is a link to a blog of someone's actual container vineyard harvest. 
http://www.washingtonwinemaker.com/blog/2007/10/15/bonsai-vineyard-harvest-complete/

Granted, the harvest is not as great as in ground, but when you have a lack of space, and a desire for a full vineyard, you do what you can! I'm prepared to freeze and blend!!

I will keep you updated on this container vineyard thing. There are pots that discourage root boundness and circling. Some are made of landscape fabric. They encourage the plants to air prune themselves. You can google the concept and find a lot about it. Here is one of many companies offering this type of product. http://www.rootmaker.com/rootmakersystem.php

Suzi


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## AlFulchino

i believe it can be done....one things is for sure..a variety that enjoys to struggle a bit would do fine...will yield be small...sure....but what about a couple of those huge 3 foot tall and 3.5-4 ft wide pots at an entry or out in the back yard near a fence or structure.....i bet it could look awesome


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## DesertDance

*Vines that Struggle to Survive*



AlFulchino said:


> i believe it can be done....one things is for sure..a variety that enjoys to struggle a bit would do fine...will yield be small...sure....but what about a couple of those huge 3 foot tall and 3.5-4 ft wide pots at an entry or out in the back yard near a fence or structure.....i bet it could look awesome



As you say, vines that like to struggle will do fine. I look at it like this. The BEST coffee beans are grown in conditions that are harsh. From what I've read, and I have studied this a lot, is the best wines are made from vines that are stressed. The vine thinks it may not make it, and puts out the best fruit it can to propagate itself. There is a lot on the web about high density planting. Google that. Interesting stuff. It's interesting to me because I am forced to plant in that fashion.

A normal vineyard plants vines 6-8' apart. So 2 vines produce 2 gallons of wine aprox. I will place container vines 2' apart, and in the same space, 4 vines will give me 2 gallons of "better" wine.... I hope I hope I hope!

I'll keep you posted on how this little experiment turns out!
Suzi


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## Runningwolf

Suzi, You are da woman! I really enjoy reading your posts! Thanks for joining our family.


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## grapeman

I don't know how, but I never noticed this thread before.

Yes I have my own vineyard and I know Al and Hammered do also- but I will let you know about mine. I have about an acre of vines producing and planted two more acres last year. These are all cold hardy varieties, since I am in a cold climate. Last winter was especially harsh so I only had about a third of an acre producing well and still had enough vines for about 300 plus gallons. I sell some in the fall and make about 200 gallons myself.

I am currently working on the licensing procedure to become a farm winery. I hope to get things in place by spring to summer, but am not rushing it since I am remodeling the barns to expand the winery. I figure it is easier to include the new areas in the application than need to reapply again to include the new areas. 

I am hoping that the winter is more gentle than last year, but you never know. So far the coldest night we have had was about -5F compared to several -22F nights last year. The wine is cold stabilizing now thanks to the winter and come spring I will finish it up and bottle the whites. The reds will follow later in the summer.

So much for me, now some of you other guys, tell the others what you have.


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## Wade E

Hey rich, I dont see a member on this site by that user name although I do remember that name on Winepress.


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## skhnmh

That'd be me. I screwed up my registration so it's just a subtitle.


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## Wade E

Cool, would you like me to fix it so that your user name is Hammered? Glad to have more expertise on here!


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## AlFulchino

thats cool...so SKHNMH is Hammered....good to see you again Steve...if anyone has not seen it...ask Steve about his website...you want an inspiration? that site is it...from do it yourself to good techniques....its all there and he has west coast know how too

back to my original reason for posting...Rich, funny you mentione dcold stabilizing..a friend was by the on Sunday w a wine from a NH vineyard and since it was a variety i have we started discussing how to bring that wine *home* so to speak and naturally cold stabilizing came up...he asked me how i was going to get all the wine outside...i laughed..i told him i didnt plan to...instead i was going to open the door to the winery some time in February when conditions were right. especially evening temps and do that for a week or so.....right now the night temps are just too cold to consider doing that...and if need be i will just shut the heat off and let it get cold enough for CS


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## grapeman

Yep, Steve (hammered) is like a Mr Fix-it with all his homemade setups. A great inspiration to all. He is also an expert on working the sidehill vineyards in tennis shoes!

I am dreading the job I will soon have of racking off the tartaric crystals from CS. I naturally need to sample each carboy as I do it for quality assurance. By about the 20th carboy sample, I really don't have any ambition left to finish. I then need to finish another day.


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## AlFulchino

you mean Steve didnt invent a platform tennis shoe that is higher in the heel and lower in the toe? seems to me that would permit him to stand straight on that hill


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## skhnmh

It would certainly make it easier to pronounce! Thanks, Wade!


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## sirden1959

*hmmm does this count.....*

dont have grapes but grows pears, strawberries, rasberry, plums, cherries, red apples, green apples, and rhubarb,,,,,,,,, whch I plan on using in wines....

pear 2009 came out great.... 

dont think I can grow grape though in montana


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## grapeman

If you grow all those things, you can also grow grapes. There are many very good cold climate grape varieties with more coming along all the time. You find your average record low, lets say -25 degrees F aand just match the variety to that. You can lose a crop sometimes due to extreme cold or a very late sprintime frost, but most years they do fine. One other thing to consider is how many frost free days and growing degree days you have. Match the variety and then you can get grapes for your own wine.

What do you think of when you hear Lake Placid NY, and it will probably be snow, cold and Olympics. I live 45 miles away and can still grow grapes and make a decent wine.


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## DesertDance

sirden1959 said:


> dont have grapes but grows pears, strawberries, rasberry, plums, cherries, red apples, green apples, and rhubarb,,,,,,,,,
> 
> dont think I can grow grape though in montana



I had to google Montana Vineyards, and this is what I came up with: http://www.chiff.com/wine/n-america/montana.htm

Like grapeman said, if they can grow grapes in NY, then you can too! Let the fun begin! Here is a link for you too! This is the National Grape Registry. All the varietals are listed here, and when you click on one it tells you where the grape is from, who is selling it, and if it is a wine grape, a table grape, or both (some can be used both ways).http://ngr.ucdavis.edu/varietylist.cfm


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## sirden1959

*thanks for the insight*

cool thanks I will have to check growing grapes in Montana.... never know mght be making grape wines ina few years


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## djrockinsteve

I have 5 grape vines in my backyard that grow up and over a trellis/porch I built for that purpose. I have kept them from producing until this year to increase root and vine quality.

Check out what vineyards are growing along your same parallel where you live. Some grapes don't grow everywhere.

As far as deer, get a motion/heat sensor and connect a radio or some noise maker to it. Your neighbors may be agitated but you'll keep the deer away. I also added soap to my apple trees. I haven't seen any more deer but the soap is getting smaller, I guess their are getting cleaned up.

You really need to adjust what you use as most critters are smart. Alternate deoporant soap, hair clippings, dog do-do in a plastic bag hanging nearby, white vinegar, your sweaty t-shirt, and move it around and opened up. Deer tend to get startled and are generally cautious unless they are hungry and brave.


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## jtstar

I started my vineyard in 09 so this is the second summer for it I have four different variaties in it at this time I have recieved about one hundred and fifty cutting this spring that I am trying to root at this time, I lost two vines last summer leaving me forty six vines this spring then the rabbits got to my vines this winter so as of today I have forty vines that I know for sure survived all of that out of forty six


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## Racer

I live in town so when the rabbits started eating things on me in my first year growing vines I couldn't rename breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Fencing does keep them out though. Once their up on the trellis wire you shouldn't have to worry about that 4 legged creature, you then get to watch for bambi though!


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## jtstar

Ived lived in this house for about twenty years now and have never seen any deer even close to it but I do love deer jerky


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## RMT

*Merlot Vineyard*



smurfe said:


> Does anyone here have their own vineyard and grow your own grapes, or fruits for wines for that matter? I have been thinking of planting some Muscadine vines as these are the only type I can realistically grow in South Louisiana without basically setting up camp next to the vines and nurturing them every minute. I would like to hear about your experiences if you grow your own crop.
> 
> Smurfe


Yes smurte, I started a backyard vineyard last year in Kelowna BC, still waiting for bud break this year. I put in 2 different clones, 25 vines of each of Merlot, with 2 different root stocks. I have raspberries at my other house in Alberta that I have made wine from.


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