Grapevines

Grow delicious tasty Grapes from your own Grape Vine!

Vines tolerate a range of soil types providing they’re free draining. Improve drainage on heavy soils by adding well-rotted organic matter and grit. After planting, it is a good idea to mulch with well rotted organic matter or chipped bark to protect the lower buds from spring frost. Remove the mulch from around the stem in spring, to stop the stem from rotting. Grape vines can be grown in containers-use a pot about 30-38cm (12-15in) in diameter and depth.

There is more than one way to prune a Grapevine, the Guyot system, and rod and spur system and to train as a standard tree when space is limited. Guyot system often used in vineyards, trains one or two fruiting arms along a main wire. The rod and spur system or cordon system is usually used for indoor grapes in greenhouses or conservatories, and for growing grapes against walls outdoors. To train as a standard tree is where you remove any excess stems appearing from the base. Allow side branches to develop on the main stem for the first one to two years.