Not what I expected arrived in the mail? Are they okay?

[lilhouseonprairie]

I ordered 20 bareroot grape plants - Zinfandel and Perlettes. (1 for wine, 1 for eating).

The vines are so dry and brittle. The main stems from the roots are peeling at the "bark" in strings. Most of the side branches just snap off because they're so dry. Maybe 1 or 2 plants in all 20 have a branch with fuzzy buds that is pliable and green under the bark.

Pardon my ignorance...is this normal? Or was I sent old stock that had dried out too much?

What do I do now? Just plant them, trim until I see some green, and hope for the best? Who knows how much I'll be taking off the main stem at that rate!

I've planted dozens of bareoot plants and especially fruit trees. In fact my fruit trees came the day before my vines from another nursery and they aren't brittle or dried out at all. Because of my lack of experience I'm pretty worried!

I planned on planting today. I worked 4 feet wide by 50 foot long beds really well in preparation. My soil is all sand and in most places it's compacted down and leeched of most nutrients. So, I dug out the top 8 inches, layered in compost from horses and chickens, and tilled it all in about 30 inches. It was a LOT of work. But worth it if they grow!

 

[blumentopferde]

A photo would be nice...

But generally speaking dormant vines look as if they were dead. I'd just plant them and see what happens...

 

[grapeman]

Call the supplier and let them know your concerns. If they are woth dealing with, they will probably offer a replacement or at least tell you how to handle it. You have put in a lot of work to get sub-par vines.

 

[wildvines]

I had something similar happen with my Malbec Argentina clones. Majority where ok. I planted them and just gave extra minerals snd ok but a small bunch nada. So as grapeman suggested call and ask


Sent from my iPhone using Wine Making

 

[lilhouseonprairie]

I didn't really hear what I wanted to hear from the nursery. There's a good chance some aren't viable. Dig them up (nevermind all your hard work) and take some pictures for credit next year. Sure, late March is the ideal time to plant in your Zone (and we shipped them to you knowing all of this) but it's warmer where we are and our heeled in bareroots don't last this long all the time.

I planted them. I had to get them out of the plastic bags. I'll trim what I know is dead. I guess I'll wait to see what grows this year. Frustrating, but what can I do? Pick another nursery next time for the second row I want to add