Well it looks like my growing season is coming to an end. Have not had a freeze yet, and my plants still have new green growth off the top, though they are not reaching for the sky as fast as this summer. It wont be long now....
My end of the year tally is, I transplanted 320 grapes this spring, 34 went on to the big vine in the sky and I will need to replant those. I talked to the winery/vineyard where I got my plants and they said no problem to come get some more cuttings when they prune, and to stick two cuttings in the ground at each location hoping one of them grows.
A little over 200 plants got tall enough I will leave them be to proceed into next year. The balance of the plants will be pruned back to two buds and get to try and be a big boy plant next summer. Hopefully they come out of the gate growing faster than this year, being an established plant, they should grow better next year.
All 34 plants that died were Pinot Noir, every one of my Pinot Gris made it, and only a couple Gris did not get tall enough and will be cut back. I conclude Pinto Noirs are harder to grow than Gris
I need to get some post and wire up soon. I am having a problem with my bamboo stakes breaking off when a storm blows thru, maybe if the leaves would drop they wouldn't blow over so bad. I am waiting for a little more rain so I can drive the post in the ground easier. This clay soil gets pretty hard in the summer. I am not looking forward to driving post and stringing wire, but the time as home.
Shot of my grapes before work yesterday.
In talking to the winery/vineyard I got my plants from, they harvested 500,000 pounds of grapes this year. They put up 20,000 gallons of juice, about 178,000lbs went to California, and the balance were sold locally to other wineries. They machine picked their grapes for the first time I was told. Sounded like an interesting shaking the grapes off the plant process.