Vineyard From the Beginning- Grapeman

[grapeman]

I am beginning a new thread to sort of document planting a new vineyard from beginning forward. The methods I use here are not standard issue, but are using methods I have gleaned from my 45 years of farming, ag college and working in research trials, including my own. Don't expect it to begin all inclusive, but it will build upon itself as time goes on.

 

[grapeman]

Starting off the vineyard, I have some land lined up for the vineyard and I will get into that in more detail with time as I prepare to plant.

For now, I need vines. Over time and experience I have decided what vines I want to include in this vineyard expansion. Next step is getting the vines. One of the quickest and easiest methods for that is to purchase them as I have always done in the past, although not exclusively. Some good sources in the eastern US are Double A Vineyards, Grafted Grapevine, and Northeastern Vine Supply. There are many more around the country, but these are the three main sources I have used.

Since I am doing this expansion on the cheap, I am going for a way to get quick vines, easily planted and the method I use will minimize time to maintain them. To that end I am starting my own vine fron 2 bud cuttings, not the normal 3 or 4. I have experimented with this process before and it works well to provide short compact vines quickly. Normally you cut a piece of the vine you want from last years growth using cuttings about a quarter inch or a bit less in size with 3 or 4 good buds on it. Make your bottom cut just below the bud flat, and make the upper cut an inch or so above the 3rd or 4th bud on a slant. That allows you to easily tell what is up and down as that is very important. The bottom cut sort of splits the bark just a bit around the bud and encourages callousing.

Here is a picture of a normal cutting. And a 2 bud cutting

 

[grapeman]

Next up I have to callous the cuttings. I put them in some sort of container and fill with a few inches of moist soil mix. I place that on a heat mat to provide constant heat to the bottom and place it in a cool room. You want the heat to form the callous but not enough heat in the room to break dormancy too quickly. 80 degrees on the bottom and about 55-60 on top is good. I sometimes use a grape lug as it works well for a couple hundred at a time.

Here is a heat mat and the grape lug with cuttings in it. Note here they are 2 bud cuttings since that is what I will be using.

 

[grapeman]

It takes about a week or two for the callouses to form. The roots form from those callous sites. Here are a couple pictures showing a callous (white bumpy area near the bottom bud) and then a shot of newly forming roots.

 

[grapeman]

Next I take the plug trays and fill them with the same potting mix. I then shove the calloused cuttings in them to fill. I am using a standard flat size that holds 38 cuttings. These are a bit over 2 inches deep and form a root plug.
First an empty tray and then a row of filled trays without any buds pushing yet.

 

[grapeman]

Next time I will post some of the cuttings beginning to open buds. Hope you guys find this informational and entertaining. Feel free to post comments and questions and this can become a tutorial thread as such. In a few years it will have a finished vineyard site of almost 4 acres.

 

[TJsBasement]

Thanks, this will be a super informative thread.
Will you be growing rootstock or self root.

 

[ibglowin]

Fantastic start to an informative thread! Can't wait to see this thing develop.

Were the cuttings dipped in a rooting hormone of sorts prior to being placed in the soil?

 

[grapeman]

Thanks, this will be a super informative thread.
Will you be growing rootstock or self root.

They are all self rooted. Grafting would be another possibility for showing at a later date.

 

[grapeman]

Fantastic start to an informative thread! Can't wait to see this thing develop.

Were the cuttings dipped in a rooting hormone of sorts prior to being placed in the soil?

I have tried it with and without rooting hormone and see no real difference. Hormone doesn't hurt, but I'm not convinced it helps much.

 

[ibglowin]

I thought that stuff was like a miracle in a bottle. I think you just have a VERY green thumb!

 

[GreginND]

Very informative. Since I have never grown a grape, or driven a tractor or done anything outside my small little city lot before (I have manhandled a tiller), I am trying to absorb as much information as possible. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and experience. MUCH appreciated.

Are you going to be showing how you prep the land, plant the vines and build your trellis? Looking forward to it.

 

[grapeman]

You will be seeing just about every operation I use for the vineyard as long as I have a working camera. Some of the stuff isn't the IDEAL way of doing things, but as time goes on you can judge for yourselves if it is working or not. It will be a long work in progress just like my other thread which grew to 200 pages of posts with time. That was a piecemeal operation and this one I have a plan in mind to implement so I thought it helpful to split it off.

 

[M1wino]

Great info this will be a big help!

 

[Runningwolf]

Rich this is a great start to an awesome thread. Thanks for sharing your experience and knowledge with us.

 

[Deezil]

Appreciate you taking the time to put this thread together, cant wait to see how it progresses... Feeling fortunate to watch this venture from the beginning

 

[OilnH2O]

Good idea, Rich! There are so many little gems of info in your other thread -- I can see that you can organize this from the first rather than the way we've all done it before where it is "...and then I did this... and then I did that... and then..."
Thanks again for all your efforts to help the rest of us out here!

 

[Duster]

as always Rich, very helpful. Thank you

 

[mwestern]

Rich,When we started our little vineyard I read someplace you should plant your rows from east to west have you heard this before ? Also how do you intend to water your rows ? Looking forward to your progress. We only have 32 plants right now maybe more when I retire. Good luck..... Mike

 

[grapeman]

The ole East/West, North/South debate will go on forever. I am of the camp that I plant whatever direction makes the most sense for the plot. A lot depends on the latitude where you are located. Where I am at, the vines get about the same amount of sun either orientation. The new vineyard will be running east/west.