Grapes

Grapes have gained popularity in recent years as a cool thing to grow in your garden. Growing wine grapes and making your own wine is an impressive hobby that I hope one day to venture into. Wild grapes grow along my brothers back fence, tapping an underground water source and thrive without help from man. There is no pruning no thinning just a huge mess of grapes overtaking the chain-link and weeds that grow in the area. I, however, like a much tidier garden and have established pruning practices for our grapes. Erik designed a fantastic grape trellis system that is functional and beautiful. Here our grapes grow on
supported wires and hang their wonderful fruit down for us to watch ripen in the summer sun. We grow many grapes in our garden most for eating and a few for wine making. We have not tried making wine yet but we are gearing up for that feat in a few years.

Care

Grapes produce fruit on previous year’s growth. When you prune you will want to leave those canes for the next seasons fruit production. There are different pruning techniques for different grape cultivars. Thompson seedless grapes are cane pruned and Flame seedless are spur pruned. Dave Wilson nursery has Fruit
Tube videos that are helpful. Grapes require full sun and good soil drainage. If you have a slopes that face south this is the ideal place for your grapes to be situated. Space your grape vines about 8 to 10 feet apart. Ensure that your soil has good water
drainage and do not amend the soil in the planting hole. Grape vine roots do not respond well to rich organic matter around their root tips. Optimum pH of the soil is 5.5 - 6.5. Well-draining soil with a thick layer of mulch on top is all you need for your grapes to thrive.

Water and fertilizer

Use a balanced blend of organic fertilizer at the beginning of the growing season and every two months thereafter until dormancy.
I have spent hours and hours on the internet trying to find out exactly how much water is needed for grapes, AAAAGGGHHHH it is frustrating! Unfortunately, you will have to do your own water
use estimates. Your garden soil, micro-climate, and age of grape vines will affect your water use. Sweet grapes/table grapes require more water than grapes used for making dry wines. Here are two articles I found that might help you decide how much water to apply. Science Daily and practical winery.

Coastal Grape Cultivars

Barbera (pictured right) Emerald Riesling, Ruby Cabernet, Tinta Maderia and Verdelho are all good coastal grape cultivars for making wine. Table grapes for the coast are mostly Muscadine varieties (Vitis rotundifolia). These grapes are also known as scuppernog grapes. There are hundreds of muscadine varieties. Check out CRFG's info page by clicking here. I have heard that Sweet Jenny and Alachua are good choices for a coastal garden. Vitis Vinifera (European Grapes) cultivars include:
Black Spanish
Champanel
Golden Muscat (American hybrid)
Black Monukka
Delight
Flame
Pearlette
Ruby Seedless

Inland grape cultivars

Pictured Fantasy grapes. Inland areas can grow coastal grapes without problems. But coastal areas usually cannot grow inland area grapes. For example: Thompson Seedless does not reach its full potential without the heat that being inland provides. Thompson also tends to get powdery mildew when grown in coastal areas. Now your micro-climate might be perfect for growing Thompson Seedless but in general the coast is not the best place for this cultivar. Cultivars that do really well in the hotter inland areas include:
Pearlette
Fantasy
Black Monukka
Venus
Concord Seedless
Thompson Seedless
Blueberry Grape
Merlot
Check out UC Davis's grape page by clicking here!