Champlain Valley - Grapemans' vineyard - Planting to small winery

[grapeman]

Ramona, yes I go to work every day, but I work in that little building that looks like a small house in some of the pictures(20x28 feet). I get to look out my office window every day and see how the vineyard is doing. I know..... but somebody has to do it!

It was rough work tonight and very painful

. I was stripping lower shoots off a lot of the vines and giving them a final pruning. I got rid of thousands of little grape clusters(still flower buds). I keep telling myself they will be better off in the end. I am leaving about 10 shoots on for now and a lot of them have 2 or 3 clusters, so I can still get some grapes from them. They are growing unbelievably fast right now. A lot of them are growing about 2 inches a day right now. Still a lot of them to strip. I planted another couple flower beds first then decided it was too early to go inside-until the skeeters just about drained me dry.

 

[JWMINNESOTA]

And to think someday we will all be able to say we knew him when he just had a few hundred vines!

 

[grapeman]

I got the Blue-X grow tubes on over the weekend. I used them this year and hopefully can keep them disease free with them on- if not off they come. I'm using them so I can spray Roundup between the vines since there is quackgrass in the spot I planted. It will alow me to spray right up to the vine without damage. Below are some pictures of the process.

Edited by: appleman

 

[JWMINNESOTA]

Is that the sole purpose for the grow tubes? I've often wondered.

 

[grapeman]

The grow tubes are a multi-purpose contraption that everybody asks what they are for. Let's see....
1: Protect vine from rodents chewing- including big 4 legged ones(deer).
2: Act as a little greenhouse to warm the plant and make it grow faster.
3: Make training easier- vine grows straight up without need for tying
4: Protect from spray - my main reason for using this time.
5: Looks pretty.
6: Makes people ask what the heck all the little blue things are- I'm telling people it's the latest in Blue-Tube Technology

 

[OilnH2O]

Rich, looks "purty!"


Question: in pic no. 6, it appears the vines in the background are pretty well along, but then in pic no. 7 it appears they are all in grow tubes. Did you just sorta "force" them into the tube?

 

[Wade E]

Looks like your getting ready for the 4th of July to launch alot of mortars. Very cool appleman. Do they glow in the dark?

 

[grapeman]

Dave, the smaller they are the easier they go in the tubes. I broke a few shoots off doing it. They SHOULD go on soon after planting. Also they go in much easier when they have been pruned back to 2-3 buds. The Cab Franc with the short graft and only a couple buds went on nice and easy.


Wade the box full of them I put together for Roman Candles.....

And I don't know if they glow in the dark butThat would be cool if they were treated with a phosphorescence(I bet I murdered that word).

 

[JWMINNESOTA]

Your among friends, you can say "That would be cool if they were treated with a glow in the dark kinda stuff."

 

[Wade E]

Kinda like a big grape RAVE!

 

[grapeman]

I continue work with training my humble little vineyard. I did the St. Pepin and Frontenac Saturday and the Buffalo yesterday. The St Pepin was less unruly than the Frontenac. The Frontenac relly was growing like a bush with lots of grape flower clusters. Not wanting them all in year 2 I pruned out to basically the largest stem. That got rid of most flowers, but now they can be trained better and easier. The first one I did had to main shoots and twisted around each other. I cut the first one off(smaller diameter) I then had the main shoot that had a small one growing off it lower on the backside, so I put the shears lower to clip it off - and it stayed. I looked closer and the main shoot had dropped down- OH NO I CUT OFF THE WHOLE VINE!

The first vine now will begin growing all over again from 1 leaf.

 

[grapeman]

I also designed and assembled a vineyard sprayer over the weekend. It is intended to be driven between rows and sprays each side of the tractor as you drive. It consists of a 3 pt hitch carry-all with a wood platform to carry the sprayer. I used a cheap $169 FIMCO spot sprayer with hand wand. I ordered a control assembly with guage for $20 and fitted it to the sprayer. I then went to my local steel shop and picked up material to make the boom. That is the metal rectangular thing in the pictures. I welded it all up and painted the whole thing red(except the sprayer and platform).


I got the needed nozzles and hoses and fittings and put the whole thing together yesterday and gave it a test spray. Don't worry in the pictures it is only water spraying out to check. At first the wires weren't long enough so I hooked it up to the lawnmower to test it. I then ran a longer wire with switch(works with a 12V pump). After testing I drove it through a couple rows to test coverage. It seems to work good at this point.


I felt I needed this sprayer for use in the vines instead of just the orchard air blast sprayer. When I spray with that I have to get at least a row away from the vines and let the spray drift down into the vines- which I don't like doing. To be continued..........

Edited by: appleman

 

[NorthernWinos]

Your going to have a fantastic vineyard real soon...Good Luck with your venture....Neat sprayer rig!!!


Sorry about the pruning error...things happen....have done it to plants mayself....I hate pruning out anything that's growing [except weeds]...doen't seen fair...but...I know ....It is necessary.

 

[bilbo-in-maine]

Too bad about snipping the whole vine - at least it wasn't a forgotten finger! I know someone who cut herself badly pruning.

Tell us what you are spraying for mainly - mildews and insects?

 

[grapeman]

So far only spraying for insects- mostly steely beetles. They just won't go away. It's been fairly dry this year- that's when they seem to be worse.





I feel sorry for the vine but 1 out of 600 isn't too bad. It looks empty ther, but I expect it to make a full recovery- just a little smaller this year.


How are your vines doing bilbo?

 

[bilbo-in-maine]

Steely beetles are something I am not familiar with here, and hopefully won't be in the future, even with global warming effects. Japanese beetles, on the other hand....

The vines are doing pretty well, although one of the Foch lost both cordon arms and is trying to push a couple of new buds now. The runt of the litter in the Landot Noir row is still slow to develop this year too, so it got a little Miracle Gro. Otherwise most vines are developing bilateral cordon arms nicely. I hope to post some photos sometime. I also planted 8 new Marquette from Northeastern Vine last week. Now I'm all planted out, no more space, which is probably good since what I have is plenty to take care of.

 

[Wade E]

Nice rig there appleman!

 

[grapeman]

I am noting early bloom in the wine grapes here now. Most varieties have at least soom blooms open, some mostly open and some just an occasional one. The American varieties like Concord, Niagara, Buffalo and Catawba are a week away from bloom.How about you other guys- are yours blloming yet, at least what clusters you left there?

 

[JWMINNESOTA]

I continue work with training my humble little vineyard...QUOTE]


Appleman, with all the work you have put into it, you should be proud, even if you are humble by nature!

 

[Waldo]

Impressive spray rig appleman.!!