LOOKING FOR TOPIC

[NorthernWinos]

Ihave been looking for a Post or Topic that was posted last year....someone had gone to a vineyard I believe in NY and had photos of all sorts of hardy varieties of grapes....






Some of the grapes were grown on a multi stemmed trunk....I am interested in trying this method as my large single trunk grapevines had died back 2 winters ago. I have read that a young trunk should stand beside the older one incase of die back.


Was it you Appleman who made that trip and Posted the photos???

 

[grapeman]

Yes NW it was me that posted the pictures. EDIT: Check out page 5 of the Champlain Valley Vineyard posts. It is the Wilsboro Research Farm in Wilsboro on Lake Champlain's NY side. The multiple trunks(canes) was the result of the head guys desire to get as much root growth as posible before training to the wires. I helped prune those vines this spring and after their second year of growth, we took a couple pounds of wood off some of those vines. We trained to 3 or 4 canes per vine depending on the vigor of the variety. Some of the vines were 15 feet long when we pruned them. We took out the bull canes and left three or 4 of the best for training up onto the wires. Most made it over the top wires and came back down to the lower wire.


After another relatively mild winter(lowest temperature was -11F) very few varieties had much bud kill.
I planted 25 Cabernet Franc this year(a vinifera) and will low train, either with a fan type training system or a couple low cordons and train upward. I planted them on some of the sandiest soil I have next to a water hydrant. It is also within 50 feet south of a pine plantation where I get a lot of reflective heat and between the sand and the reflection, it typically runs 10-15 degrees higher than surrounding area.(But I digress) I didn't get any pictures at pruning, but plan on going back later this summer to get picture of their progress. Edited by: appleman

 

[NorthernWinos]

Thanks for refreshing my memory about the vineyard on Page 5 of your vineyard Topic...I like seeing the fan shape trellising sysytem...


I am going to try that on my newly planted vines....after loosing my old vines 2 winters ago due to the trunk splitting I am going to try having more than one trunk and always have a young one growing from the base. I had read in the book Northern Wineworks to always have a young vine coming from the base.


Old split vines...

Was a heart breaker to pull out those old vines this spring...but have my young cuttings set out and have a new start.


I planted one row to a more disease resistant variety [Beta] and the other to the more hardy variety [Valiant]...both are like a Concord grape....will be fun to watch them grow again.....Some of the vines had regrown last year from the roots, those are looking pretty good with little grapes on them.


Nice that you went back to that vineyard for another look. Thanks again for Posting that.....Your vineyard has come a long way since Page 1.