We had a number of mild days in January that were perfect for some of the off-season tasks. My grandsons, Charlie and Teddy, spent several sunny afternoons helping me remove the grow tubes from the vines planted in 2016. Both boys are eager to work in the vineyard with me and do a great job as my field buddies.
I doubled the size of the vineyard last year by adding 100 new vines—mostly Cabernet, Syrah and Viognier—which called for the protective cover of Blue-X grow tubes. The boys and I worked up a little assembly-line concept that split the work into separate tasks, and the three of us made short work of grow tube removal and disposal.
Following that bit of cleanup, I took up my pruning tasks in preparation for the growing season. It's my second year pruning, tying and training the vines, and my comfort level with the decision-making process has increased. I tackled the vinifera first, pruning the cordons to about 30 inches and the shoots back to two buds. Some of the growth, particularly the newly-planted Cabernet, was quite vigorous in the first year. I planted 46 new Cab vines in 2016, 18 of them on 3309 rootstock and the balance on 101-14, but was unable to see any real difference in he first year growth between the two rootstocks. The Syrah made slightly less progress than the Cab, and the Viognier even less.
All of the vinifera were pruned and trained using vertical shoot positioning (VSP), the standard method for these grapes. Hybrids, however, have different recommended training methods. Last year, I employed top-wire cordon (TWC) for the Baco Noir, St. Vincent and Chambourcin and mid-wire cordon (MWC) for Seyval Blanc, Chardonnel and Arandell. following the guidance from Double-A Vineyards on pruning and training for each variety.
The biggest difference between VSP, TWC and MWC is the height of the wire where the T-shaped cordons, or arms of the vine, are placed. On VSP-trained vines, the cordons are from 30-in. to 36-in. above the ground. On my vines, they are at 35 inches. The cordons on my MWC vines are at 59 inches, and at 71 inches for TWC vines.
This year, however, I changed the Seyval Blanc and Chardonnel to VSP from last year's MWC. At this writing, I have not pruned the Baco Noir, Arandell, Chambourcin or St. Vincent. Right now, I plan to leave all these except Arandell at TWC.
I have a dilemma with the Arandell. I have that variety trained as MWC, even though the Double-A recommendation for the variety is TWC. I either made a mistake last year when training this variety, or the Double-A recommendation has changed. Regardless, my Arandell do not exhibit the trailing growth habit of the other TWC varieties, and based on last-year's growth, and the fact the vines are on 101-14 rootstock, I am thinking of changing to VSP this year.
One thing is for sure, I will need to make my training decisions soon. The hybrids are all I have left to prune in this off season.
Next step: planning my spray routine and getting ready for warmer weather.
I doubled the size of the vineyard last year by adding 100 new vines—mostly Cabernet, Syrah and Viognier—which called for the protective cover of Blue-X grow tubes. The boys and I worked up a little assembly-line concept that split the work into separate tasks, and the three of us made short work of grow tube removal and disposal.
Following that bit of cleanup, I took up my pruning tasks in preparation for the growing season. It's my second year pruning, tying and training the vines, and my comfort level with the decision-making process has increased. I tackled the vinifera first, pruning the cordons to about 30 inches and the shoots back to two buds. Some of the growth, particularly the newly-planted Cabernet, was quite vigorous in the first year. I planted 46 new Cab vines in 2016, 18 of them on 3309 rootstock and the balance on 101-14, but was unable to see any real difference in he first year growth between the two rootstocks. The Syrah made slightly less progress than the Cab, and the Viognier even less.
 |
VSP training diagram for fourth-year vines,
from Double-A Vineyards. MWC and TWC
methods place the cordons (arms) at greater
heights.
|
The biggest difference between VSP, TWC and MWC is the height of the wire where the T-shaped cordons, or arms of the vine, are placed. On VSP-trained vines, the cordons are from 30-in. to 36-in. above the ground. On my vines, they are at 35 inches. The cordons on my MWC vines are at 59 inches, and at 71 inches for TWC vines.
This year, however, I changed the Seyval Blanc and Chardonnel to VSP from last year's MWC. At this writing, I have not pruned the Baco Noir, Arandell, Chambourcin or St. Vincent. Right now, I plan to leave all these except Arandell at TWC.
I have a dilemma with the Arandell. I have that variety trained as MWC, even though the Double-A recommendation for the variety is TWC. I either made a mistake last year when training this variety, or the Double-A recommendation has changed. Regardless, my Arandell do not exhibit the trailing growth habit of the other TWC varieties, and based on last-year's growth, and the fact the vines are on 101-14 rootstock, I am thinking of changing to VSP this year.
One thing is for sure, I will need to make my training decisions soon. The hybrids are all I have left to prune in this off season.
Next step: planning my spray routine and getting ready for warmer weather.
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