Add Your Backyard Vineyard

[Obbnw]

Re-purposing rules. Of course it makes it hard to throw trash out since you might find a use for it. I prefer "trashmans garden" versus "redneck garden".

 

[Obbnw]

Repurposed:
wall is the old driveway
steel posts from old chain link fence
raised beds from old redwood siding lined with left over steel roofing
left over steel roofing used as siding on neighbors shed
Fence decor made from old house subfloor which was used as the concrete foundation forms when the house was build in 1949.

 

[wood1954]

Posting this because I thought it looked cool. Taken in the early morning

 

[koolmoto]

Just finished planting my little vineyard on the south facing hillside of my back yard in Novato, CA.
27x Cab Sauv, 9x Cab Franc, and 13x Merlot along the back fence.

 

[wood1954]

Sounds like a nice big blend

 

[Obbnw]

Nothing wrong with those. Vinifera is SLC? Who woulda thunk it!

I'm curious as to how your grapes do when it gets really hot. I've read articles about grapes shutting down and not really growing when it gets over about 95. We've had a pretty hot stretch here (96 97 100 93 94 101 104 105 105 100 95 100 94 96 96 95) and its forecast to continue for another 2 weeks (those are the official SLC temps I suspect my house is about 2 degrees lower). My vines are growing as fast as ever. If anything they are growing faster.

I have 2 theories
1) since the relative humidity has been 10-15% the grape cooling mechanism is just more efficient and therefor the can handle hotter temps.
2) the Tempranillo and Malbecs are just do better in hotter weather than some of the more "traditional" varieties. The reason I picked those is that they both do well in hot climates and the Argentina wine region is very similar to the SLC valley.

With your elevation you may not get quite as hot but you must get at least a week or so this hot. How do your plantings handle the heat?

 

[ibglowin]

@Obbnw They have been growing Vinifera down south in Deming, NM for close to 30 years now. Deming is about an hour West of Las Cruces, NM. Those guys get months and months of 100+ degree days every year and they have no problems growing nice looking vinifera grapes. What happens is that at least with Vinifiera the acid levels start to drop as ripening proceeds so they have a juggling game of trying to time harvest with Brix level vs. pH. They usually pick with a pretty high Brix and a pH in the 3.9-4.0 levels.

I only see an occasional day or two maybe a week of close to triple digits each Summer. Other than that we are usually only in the upper 80's or low 90's. Sometimes lower if the monsoons kick in which this year we call them the "non-soons". Just not happening for us this Summer. High pressure over us most of this Summer blocking the moisture from coming up from Mexico.

Since I am growing Cold Hardy Hybrids, acid is never a problem they are usually low pH and high acid in the cooler regions up north. But with our endless days of sunshine and 90 degree weather the acid levels have been coming down into an almost textbook perfect range. I always do a field blend each year so things vary year to year but I always have a brix in the 22-24 range and a pH in the 3.5-3.7 range so very manageable.

 

[wood1954]

When I was in Greece last fall I noticed many vineyards had fabric shading the grapes. Ibglowin, What grape variety is that acid level?

 

[ibglowin]

@wood1954 I have mainly Marquette, Noiret, and a few Corot Noir

 

[wood1954]

I’d kill for those numbers for my Marquette, well maybe twist an arm.

 

[ibglowin]

I think the sunshine and hot weather just slowly brings those acid levels down (and pH up) over the course of the Summer.

 

[ibglowin]

@wood1954 the other thing is I use 71B yeast which will eat quite a bit of malic acid during AF so it will also drive your final pH up when all is said and done.

 

[Obbnw]

Thanks - Deming is a similar elevation as here and June/July/August temps are similar. Deming average high is about 2 degrees above SLC but I bet the records are 5-10 above ours. Deming is much warmer in April, May, September and October though.

I also have relatively high PH. The heat combined with alkaline, heavy soils make it tough to hit the "ideal" acid. I planted some Baco Noir this spring - curious to see how they turn out.

 

[Rob Kneeland]

I put in 10 Marquette vines in late spring. (between Ottawa and Montreal) They all grew well with only a few cucumber beetles early in the year. They were controlled with a thumb and index finger. If they all winter OK I will add another 15 vines.

Growing them on the ground with no pruning year one, then TWC next year.

Looking forward to the first taste in September 2023! Using the time to buy equipment and learn.

So far, so good.

 

[VillaVino]

Had an almost perfect growing season in west central Wisconsin this year. Sabrevois, Brianna and Louise Swensons are doing very well. Marquettes did not produce though. Out of ~ 250 Marquette vines, I might get 6 gals. Granted, only half are 3 years olds but my 10 year olds had a rough spring. Brix 22 and pH still below 3.0. Will harvest tomorrow along with some PITA Lacresent.

 

[wood1954]

I put in 10 Marquette vines in late spring. (between Ottawa and Montreal) They all grew well with only a few cucumber beetles early in the year. They were controlled with a thumb and index finger. If they all winter OK I will add another 15 vines.

Growing them on the ground with no pruning year one, then TWC next year.

Looking forward to the first taste in September 2023! Using the time to buy equipment and learn.

So far, so good.

If you have deer in the area I suggest you fence your grapes. I used chicken wire an steel posts.

 

[wood1954]

Had an almost perfect growing season in west central Wisconsin this year. Sabrevois, Brianna and Louise Swensons are doing very well. Marquettes did not produce though. Out of ~ 250 Marquette vines, I might get 6 gals. Granted, only half are 3 years olds but my 10 year olds had a rough spring. Brix 22 and pH still below 3.0. Will harvest tomorrow along with some PITA Lacresent.

Are you a winery? That’s a lot of grapes.

 

[VillaVino]

If you have deer in the area I suggest you fence your grapes. I used chicken wire an steel posts.

Probably will not put up a fence. The deer really have only given my young vines attention. Once the vines are older, they leave them alone. For the first time I saw turkeys pecking at my grapes. They usually are pecking at the ground for bugs. They left after a salvo of bottle rockets.

 

[VillaVino]

Are you a winery? That’s a lot of grapes.

We are not a winery. I sell to local wineries though.

 

[Rob Kneeland]

If you have deer in the area I suggest you fence your grapes. I used chicken wire an steel posts.

Racoons yes, deer not many. I relocated about 6 racoons this year. Quite sure they'd be interested in ripe grapes. I know they like my corn! Thanks for the feedback.