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Ricky2Guns

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In Brief the military sent me to FT Bliss TX from Long Island NY. Now I’m a Cowboy in training, name is Ricky2Guns ( or just Rick). Decided to buy a house (just closed on it 7 JUL 2018) and become a Texan. My goal as it relates to the forum is growing successful grape vines. Not ready ( for the moment) in making wine, just full bodies clusters for the table. I’ve made just about all the mistakes a newbie can make in getting started.

To my credit, I did do some things right. I’ve put up my stakes 6 feet apart, I ran my wires 1’ and 4’ off the ground. I have rocky/sandy native soil which I mixed 50/50 compost. The ball of the trunk sits above ground, and the hole I dug was twice the size of the bucket the vines were purchased in. I’m not running irrigation yet as my goal is to run vines along my rock walls for the ambiance. The irrigation system will be installed when the sod is put in ( spaced away from the vines with a 2’ brick wall divider.

Now the things I did wrong. I started planting my vines too early (not the winter/spring as I found out later). I may have over watered them during the initial transplant. Seven out of nine seem to be in shock as they’ve dropped all their leaves, Paid to much for very small vines then learned the local nursery had better selections at competitive pricing to the smaller ones I got from Lowes.

As for soil testing I got a $10 tester at Lowes home improvement. I measured moisture with varying results from dry to over watered. PH levels measured at a 7 and the location gets over 8hrs of sun. I tend to join forums for hobbies I start as I get better results by sharing information with people who share the same passions. Looking forward to getting on the right track as I continue to read more of the what the GRAPEMAN posts, and input from others.

Wow, I never write this much!
 
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Welcome to the forum
I dont grow grapes so i cant comment on the finer points of it , but it sounds like you can recognize when something isn't working and are open to it being you that needs fixed so you should be able to succeed to the point of eventual obsession.
At maturity how many lbs of grape are you shooting for.
Are you planning any wines for the mean time. I think you will find it recommended by most folks here. Screw some stuff up that you are less attached to..
 
Pics or it didn’t happen. :)
I wouldn’t even embarrass myself posting the twigs I have up right now,lol. The leaves fell off the 3rd day after planting. A local from a NM vineyard advised I leave it alone for now. Just keep moist, wait for spring and they should come back. They aren’t dead, just shocked I guess.
 
Digging holes in Texas in August....you must be from New York! :D:b
Born and raised! I bought a house in NY that already had grape vines ( not sure what type). They were really hardy though. There was one in a corner I wanted to remove. I ran it over with a lawn mower 3 different times and it came back. In my Texas home I want to run them along the rock walls for looks. Don’t really care what type.
 
I wouldn’t even embarrass myself posting the twigs I have up right now,lol. The leaves fell off the 3rd day after planting. A local from a NM vineyard advised I leave it alone for now. Just keep moist, wait for spring and they should come back. They aren’t dead, just shocked I guess.
No worries. Anyone that knows what they are looking at will appreciate the labor involved.
Someone might see something in your yard or have a tip for your terran that you ll miss without pics.
And youll have a before and after record.
No pics didnt happen.
Lol.
Good to hear they're not dead. Should take off this spring.
 

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