Grape Vines for Sale

Growing grape vines is hard work, but it can also be very rewarding and enjoyable. The main thing that you have to remember, as with many other tasks in life, is that you need to be prepared. Thanks to the internet there is a wealth of information that exists when it comes to growing grape vines. You can source websites, ebooks and even talk to experienced growers. What you need to know is that there are a few crucial factors which can make or break you grape growing efforts, and a big part of this hinges on the type of grape you choose to grow.

Each variety of grapes requires certain conditions under which to grow, flower and produce fruit properly. Some even need to be within a particular geographical range. You might think that one vineyard would produce the exact same quality of vines throughout. If you’re not careful, this might not be true. It is possible to one vineyard to have such a range of micro-climates that there is a vast difference in the quality from one end to the other. Things that need to be considered include the soil quality, amount of sunlight, slope, rainfall trends, the quality of drainage and timing of the onset of frost.

There are two main types of grapes which are cultivated. If you live in North America, you may be more familiar with members of the Vitis labrusca family. These grapes have a shorter growing season and are therefore a good choice in frost prone areas. European countries tend to have an affinity for the Vitis vinifera family. These can be eaten as grapes themselves but they are great for making wine. Most varieties can be sourced from nurseries, either within your area or online.

You can’t take up growing grape vines if you don’t have your rootstocks, and you won’t have good rootstocks unless you buy them from a reputable nursery. What is the rootstock you ask? The rootstock is that lower portion of the vine which may or may not be grafted. It has many functions, from anchoring the plant, to helping fight off diseases and taking part in reproduction. As you can see, all of these roles make it a very important part of the plant and if the foundation of the grape plant isn’t stable, how can you expect the rest of the plant to be?

The good news is that modern advances in technology have made growing grape vines a little easier. New techniques in irrigation and canopy management have gone a long way towards increasing productivity and these can be modified for either home or commercial use. While growing grape vines still involves a lot of preparation and dedication, there are things that you can do to make the process smoother.

Tags: fruit, grape vines, grapes, Growing grape vines, micro climates, nursery, plant, rootstock, variety of grapes

This entry was posted on Tuesday, March 10th, 2009 at 10:02 am and is filed under Grape Growing Success. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.