General gardening knowledge tells me that wood used as a mulch is broken down by a bacteria that consumes nitrogen from the soil. Recommendations are to use anywhere from 25-50% more nitrogen fertilizer when using a wood mulch.
From "From Vines to Vines" by Jeff Cox pp 54-55
Mulching the area under the vines is not recommended for any except the very hot and dry areas. The mulch keeps the soil moist, which can stimulate late vine growth - growth that will be weak, tender, and immature heading into cold weather, with a much greater chance of winterkill. Such late growth takes carbohydrates that would better be pumped into ripening grapes. Also, mulches decay over the summer, washing soluble nutrients down to the vine roots, stimulating even more undesirable late growth."
"The vine bed goes through the winter with bare soil. This allows frost to penetrate deeply into the ground, preventing early bud burst, and the consequent danger of frost damage, in the spring. Dr. John McGrew of the USDA told me that he had two rows of vines along his driveway in Maryland. One was mulched overwinter and through the spring, and the other had bare soil. the mulch kept the soil warmer, and the vine growth began there before it did in the unmulched bid. This early growth was killed by late frosts while the bare=soil vines had no injury at all."
I think it is time for you to write your own book.
For at least the third time now: Please tell us where you grow your grapes and what varieties you grow. Perhaps you are in one of those hot and dry areas for which Cox makes a possible exception.
That does not make any sense. You are talking about an entirely different thing.
You have already gotten feedback on wood chip mulch.
If you think it works for YOU, then fine, go for it. When you advise others, it is a good idea to see if what seems to work for you would work for others in an entirely different environment that is entirely different.
This whole debate began with you telling Michael who lives in England and already has extremely vigorous vines to mulch. In my opinion, you are trying to paint with a really broad brush and perhaps the wrong brush at that.
Seems to me you have gained more knowledgeable feedback than what you have sown. :-)
Just curious; when you write your book on mulching vineyards, are you going to use your alias of "doublesb" or your real name?
Give me some feedback. Tell me where you grow your grapes and what varieties you grow.
jay - this isn't a "board" (thankfully). This is usenet ...
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