It appears the very first vine I planted, a Norton, is toast. It was the first in the row, and it never really took off. There were originally 12 Norton vines, and half of them have picked up a little over the past week while the other half continue to struggle. I am not optimistic about their chances. I haven totally given up, however, because one of the reference papers on Norton says the variety can be slow to start, and even when it looks like all is lost, they get a second wind. Mine are own-rooted vines, and perhaps my lost vine will find another bud to push. We'll see.
I believe the lack of rain is partly to blame. It is a little warmer than normal here, but most importantly, we've gone another week with only the promise of precipitation. The weather forecast starts the day with a 20 or 30 percent chance of thunderstorms, and by noon, it's down to zero. It's the same every day. In response, I increased the amount and frequency of watering, and attribute the improvement in the Norton to this.
I has been hard to gauge how much water the young vines need. The vinifera and hybrids have shown no signs of stress, and several varieties are at the top or out of the Blue-X grow tubes. The Cabernet, Zinfandel and Viognier are the most vigorous of the vinifera, and Arandell, Seyval Blanc and Baco Noir hybrids are right there with them. The best of the Norton are barely halfway up the 30 inch sleeve.
There is no real pattern to which vines are doing best. All the vinifera, as well as Arandell, are grafted on 101-14 Millardet Et De Grasset is highly resistant to phylloxera and thrives in heavy clay (perfect for me). The Baco Noir and Seyval Blanc, like the Norton, are own-rooted. It will be interesting to see how this plays out over time.
I also have a two Chambourcin grafted on 3309 Couderc rootstock, which prefers deep, well drained soil and is also highly resistant to phylloxera. The other six are on their own roots. There is no difference at this point in the performance.
The compost arrived Friday afternoon, and I will start mulching with it this week.The nursery said it is leaf compost, and will require a little lime to balance the acidity. I will add a little to the soil first before mounding the compost around the grow tubes. They delivered eight yards, which sounds like a lot more than it appears. I expected the pile to be bigger. It will probably grow in size when I start shoveling.
The forecast shows from 60 to 90 percent chance of rain in the week ahead. Let's hope the actual weather doesn't once again make liars out of the forecasters. They have already dropped the percentage for today, and it isn't even noon.
I believe the lack of rain is partly to blame. It is a little warmer than normal here, but most importantly, we've gone another week with only the promise of precipitation. The weather forecast starts the day with a 20 or 30 percent chance of thunderstorms, and by noon, it's down to zero. It's the same every day. In response, I increased the amount and frequency of watering, and attribute the improvement in the Norton to this.
I has been hard to gauge how much water the young vines need. The vinifera and hybrids have shown no signs of stress, and several varieties are at the top or out of the Blue-X grow tubes. The Cabernet, Zinfandel and Viognier are the most vigorous of the vinifera, and Arandell, Seyval Blanc and Baco Noir hybrids are right there with them. The best of the Norton are barely halfway up the 30 inch sleeve.
There is no real pattern to which vines are doing best. All the vinifera, as well as Arandell, are grafted on 101-14 Millardet Et De Grasset is highly resistant to phylloxera and thrives in heavy clay (perfect for me). The Baco Noir and Seyval Blanc, like the Norton, are own-rooted. It will be interesting to see how this plays out over time.
I also have a two Chambourcin grafted on 3309 Couderc rootstock, which prefers deep, well drained soil and is also highly resistant to phylloxera. The other six are on their own roots. There is no difference at this point in the performance.
The compost arrived Friday afternoon, and I will start mulching with it this week.The nursery said it is leaf compost, and will require a little lime to balance the acidity. I will add a little to the soil first before mounding the compost around the grow tubes. They delivered eight yards, which sounds like a lot more than it appears. I expected the pile to be bigger. It will probably grow in size when I start shoveling.
The forecast shows from 60 to 90 percent chance of rain in the week ahead. Let's hope the actual weather doesn't once again make liars out of the forecasters. They have already dropped the percentage for today, and it isn't even noon.
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