Whether eaten fresh off the vine, pressed into juice or made into wine, grapes are a delicious and decorative addition to your garden.
Planting Grapes
Choose a site free from both late spring frosts and early fall frosts. If that isn't possible, protect your vine with a good quality geotextile covering (floating row cover) during danger periods. Grapes require heat so plant your vine where it will get the most sun. Grapes do well in most soils as long as you have good drainage. Wet or heavy clay soils are not good for grapes. An ideal pH level for grapes is 6.5 but they grow well between 6.5 and 7.5.
In the spring, when planting a potted grape vine, dig down about double the depth of the plant pot. Refill the hole half way with a loose mix of compost or well-rotted manure and good soil. Give the potted vine a good drink and stand it out of the sun for 30 minutes or so before planting to allow time for water to be taken up into the roots. Remove the plant from its pot and set it in the hole. Pack soil around the plant, eliminating air pockets. Adding a handful of bonemeal will aid in root growth. Water well. A good rule of thumb is to give each plant about 5 gallons of water. Watch carefully to see that it soaks into the ground within a few minutes.
Grape Vine Care
Your grape vine will need frequent watering in its first year to encourage healthy root growth. Keep a 5 gallon bucket handy and continue to provide a bucket of water about once a week. Deep watering encourages deeper root growth. Pinch out any grape clusters and don't allow the plant to produce fruit in the first year. This is the time for your vine to use all its strength to produce strong roots. If you have used compost when planting your vine you will not likely need to fertilize it again. While nitrogen aids in leaf growth, desirable in the first year, too much nitrogen will prompt excessive leaf growth at the expense of fruit, Consider using a grow tube to help establish your vine and protect it from animals, accidental trampling or wind damage during the first growing season. Remove the tube in late summer to allow time for the vine to harden up and get ready for winter. Stop watering in late summer or early fall to give the plant time to eliminate the freezable water in the vine. As the days get colder the grape vine produces a kind of antifreeze to see it through the winter months. Leaving on the grow tube will delay hardening up and antifreeze production. Watering too long will make it difficult for the vine to rid itself of excess water, causing it to be more susceptible to winter kill.
Grow a Healthy Pest-Free Grape Vine
Wasps break open the skin of grapes and feed on the flesh. To keep them away from your grapes, prepare a wasp attractant and hang it near the vine. Combine 2 tablespoons of sugar, 1 cup of water, 1 cup of vinegar and 1 cup of fruit juice. Heat until the sugar is dissolved, let it cool then fill a large plastic pop bottle about half full, leaving off the cap. Tie a string around the neck of the bottle and hang it near your vine just as the grapes begin to turn color. Wasps are attracted to the liquid and fly in but can't get back out.
Plant a rose bush near the vine. Insects, mildew and fungi seem to prefer the sweet smell of roses providing an early warning for the need to treat your grape vine for pests and disease. Plant a hyssop nearby. Hyssop is said to stimulate root growth and improve the flavor of grapes.
Pruning a grape vine is intended to distribute the fruit bearing wood evenly over the vine and open up the canopy to aid in air circulation, discouraging disease. To get the most fruit from your plant determine what pruning method is best for your variety, training technique and climate.
Grape Vine Winter Protection
The best winter protection for grapes is snow cover but you can improve winter protection by providing a windbreak - a hill, a berm, buildings, trees or snow fencing. Bare soils pick up heat even in winter and freezing-thawing is very hard on root structure. Straw is a good insulator but attracts rodents and will suck up water from snow melt which could then freeze the vine if another frost occurs. You may add a 6"-12" hill of soil around the trunk for winter but stay away from soil 'burial', laying the vine on the ground and completely covering it with dirt. Soil burial encourages soil-borne diseases. In areas without snow, a floating row cover gives safe and effective protection.
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