Grape Planting

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Learn About Grape Planting

Grape planting is the first stage in the process of making your own wine. The thing that most determines the taste of the wine is the quality of the grapes that are used to make it. Therefore the planting and growing stage is a vital step in the wine making process.

Best Time for Grape Planting

Early spring is the ideal time for planting your grapevines. It is inadvisable to plant in autumn as this will frequently lead to the loss of plants in winter. You'll need to choose your site, decide what is a manageable size, analyze the soil and choose the right type of plants for your land.

During your first year you should focus on preparing the soil and choosing your cultivars. You will also want to keep the plants fertilized and weed free, as well as keeping insects and diseases at bay. You will also need to prune dead branches and the top growth. If the planting season is dry, extra watering will be required.

Choosing the Right Location for Grape Planting

As with real estate, there are three major factors to consider when planting your first grapevine - location, location, location.

Growing grapes successfully requires knowledge, time and dedication. Choosing the right location is crucial and there are many factors which need to be taken into consideration.

You need to know if the location has all the right properties and some of the most important points to consider are:

soil quality
slope
spacing
altitude
water drainage
daily duration of sunlight
frost
heat pockets
rainfall trends
wind

You will need to know which grapes thrive under which conditions. If you already own land, for example if you are planning to grow grapes in your own back garden, you will need to know which grapes are suited to that environment.

Altenatively, if you want to grow a specific type of grape, you'll need to choose a plot of land which is suitable.

If you want to be able to sell your grapes or your wine, you will also need to think about the local market and availability of labour.

Overview of Some Important Requirements for Grape Planting

Grapevines need to be able to access as much sunlight as possible and so south facing slopes are best and both sides of the vine will require the same amount of sun. Adequate drainage is essential as vines do not do well if they are standing in puddles or extremely wet soil.If you are growing grapes for wine making, it isn't usually necessary to use fertilizers, as a lack of nutrients tends to produce smaller grapes which are better for wine. However, if the soil is of very poor quality, some fertilizer may be needed.

Vines should be planted about six feet apart and where there there is a large crop, rows should be about eight feet wide.Each vine will eventually produce about one gallon of wine.

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