Cab Franc vines dead

[willowhomestead]

Ok, last year I added 11 Cab Franc vines to my vineyard. They did well and produced several canes last year. I pruned them in March (this spring) while still dormant and they looked good. Since then we had had a lot of rain and at times the water stood around the vines. We also had a freeze in mid May, and up to that point the vines semed vital and were undergoing bud swell. Since then the vines have died (all 11). They did not appear to be under stress nor was there evidence of any damage (bug or otherwise). These vines are rated for Zone 6 and I live in Zone 6A. I would think the vines would be hardy enough for this zone, but the evidence seems to point at the freeze killing them. These were grafted vines (root stock 101-14). I've given these vines long enough and am getting ready to start dissecting one to examine the vine to see what I can find. My question is has any one else had similar experiences and does anyone have an opinion to share? Thanks in advance.

A pic from last June one month after planting.

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A shot this June.

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Sorry for you!

 

[Dennis Griffith]

Sorry for you!

They all died. I replaced the row with Noiret, a variety out of upstate New York. Planted 5 in 2022 and another 5 this year. The 2022 are bearing this year (limited). If the vine is healthy, I'll let them bear a small amount on year 2. So far, so good. I believe the issue here is climate, it can be very erratic in the spring. Charts say Zone 6a, but experience says to act like its Zone 5. Last year it was a warm spring, until it dropped to 22 degrees on May 27th. Was a poor year for fruit, I didn't even have pears, which is rare. That is when the last Cab Franc died.