Wine Instruction

Wine is growing in popularity, but when the economy slumps, sales soften.  It doesn't mean that wine still isn't enjoyed.  However, if you want to know what the grape growers know, then you need to grow your own grapes.  What do you need to know to grow your own grapes?  Read this article as a high level How to grow vineyard grapes.  Wine grapes are not like the usual grapes we see in the grocery store.  They especially need certain conditions to produce the award winning wines.  Read on for more on how to grow these wine grapes.

As the name suggests, vineyard grapes are grown in long, tall rows of vine-ready plots of land literally, a large yard filled with grape growing vines. Vineyard grapes are mostly dedicated to the care and harvest of wine grapes, but these plots of land can be accessible to a couple of sub types of table grapes as well. However, not all types of grapes benefit from this treatment. Some prefer a more expansive setup, requiring a horizontal growing area; and some prefer a smaller growing field with a lower vertical clearing. For this article though, we will be focusing on vineyard grapes for wine production.

As they say: the better the grapes, the better the wine will be. That means, establishing the roots of your vineyard grapes plays a critical role in ensuring that you have good quality wine in the long run. You first area of concern would then have to be the actual location of your vineyard. You need to match the exacting conditions of your plot of land with whatever wine grape plants that have the best potential to thrive in that area. Certain grape varieties prefer a certain climate and a certain kind of soil in order to produce quality wines. It would be best to ask horticulturists around your general area which grapes will be best suited for planting. Even if the general vicinity of your proposed plantation has its share of local vineyards around, the conditions on your plot of land may still affect the growth of your vineyard grapes differently.

Before you plant your seedlings, it is imperative that you have the soil fertilized and turned. This ensures that water drainage is possible, and that the plants get apt moisture without getting waterlogged. Vineyards are usually arranged in long rows, in order to maximize space. It is likewise essential that the proposed grape plants on these rows will get their share of sunlight all throughout the growing period. Full sunlight is the one catalyst needed to make the grapes flower and bloom. From these blooms, the flowering buds will emerge that will eventually turn into wine grapes. If parts of the vineyard are perpetually in the shadows, or get less sunlight than the rest, there is a possibility that the plants there will never flower and bloom.

The rest of the layout of the land should likewise be cleared from any shade throwing object. It does not matter if it is a building, or a wide spreading tree any wine grape plant that lives within its shadows will most likely remain dormant. If you cannot clear these shade throwing objects, it would be best not to plant any grape vines nearby. A fence with a fine net or mesh covering will keep larger animals (like deer or raccoons) from helping themselves with your grapes. But you need to be extra vigilant with birds, rabbits, rodents and marauding insects.

Try to plant your seedlings either during the height of the harvest season or one (to two weeks) afterward. This will give the plants the needed time to develop fully and acclimatize itself to its new growing environment.

Jordan Miller is a grape growing expert.

For more great tips on how to grow grapes and make wine visit http://www.grapegrowth.com

More on Vineyard Grapes

California's Greatest Wine Grape?

Unfortunately, with the rush to increase volume and take advantage of post-Sideways demand, sufficient care has not always been taken when selecting vineyard sites, tending those vineyards and making the wine. ...

Publish Date: 03/30/2010