I am just about to buy a parcel of land planted with a number of untrained table grape vines. I want to replant part of the land with wine grapes trained on trellises. I was made aware that if I remove the old vines I would need to let the soil rest before replanting can occur.
Should I let it rest and how long should I wait before replanting with the new?
Cheers
I don't see any reason to rest the soil. The crummier the soil, the better the wine. What is the root stock, if any? If the vines are labrusca, pull and plant. If the scion wood is vinifera, whack it off the root stock, and t-bud.
No rest is required especially when you consider the soil isn't "working" when you grow a plant.
"The crummier the soil, the better the wine."
Total myth.
It is not necessarily letting the soil "rest", but replanted vines
*can* suffer lack of vigor if they aren't a strong rooted type. This is believed to be due to soil pathogens (nematodes, fungus, etc.). At least one year is recommended. You may or may not see any problems if you immediately replant. A vigorous variety or rootstock will have less risk.Stephen
Can I get a cite on that? Fertile soil may give a large crop (good if yo are going to sell) but, struggling vines set small grapes.
Hi to all,
Thanks. I got a vinegrower to look at the field, he told me that the land loves vines. We just pruned the existing vines and we got a year's growth averaging
12 feet from almost all the vineplants. No irrigation. Soil mostly clay and some limestone.The current vines planted in the land is a local varietal grafted on american rootstock. Girgentina its called, thought to be imported by the knights from France. (i.e. 450yrs ago)
I intend to plant syrah or cabernet sauv. also grafted on american stock.
If you remove the European fruit wood, and "T-bud" graft onto the stump, you'll save yourself 2 to 3 years before you can get a crop out.
Knights from France? Chevalier du Cep? Where the hell are you? In a viticultural region 3 to 5 I hope. These puppies don't like snow or 100F temps.
The current layout of vines is quite haphazard. The vines are head trained not trellised, they are adequately spaced, but not ordered in rows. Therefore working them is quite labourious. That's why I was thinking of replanting.
The chevaliers are actually de Malte.
I dont know what region I am in. but frost is unheard of here, although we see 100F once every lustre.
How old are the vines? Were they planted by Italians or French? If so, they probably had a field blend in mind. Have you made wine from the vineyard?
The vines are 20 to 40 years old. They were planted by local farmers. I've just bought the land, never harvested anything as yet.
Uh, I just googled your table grape (Girgentina), Fish, and it turns out to be a wine grape from Malta.
Cabs and Syrahs are every where, but who do you know that makes a Girgentina?
Malta Climate The climate is Mediterranean (Köppen climate classification Csa) / Subtropical [58][59], with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers.
Syrah/Shiraz (region 3) may do OK where you are, but a Cab (region 2) would struggle. You might try Barbera, Nebbiolo (used to make Barolo), or Sangiovese (heavey tannic wines like Brunelo, or light fruity wines). The is also the indigenous red grape of Mallta the Gellewza which produces medium bodied easy drinking red wines and award winning roses.
Head pruning under these conditions is a good thing because it shades the grapes, helping to prevent sunburn, which can then be infected with mold.
Cane pruning or cordon is best for areas that are cool, and you want the circulation of air, and penetration of sunlight to remove any moisture that may collect in the canopy.
I'd suggest that you keep an experimental plot of these grapes, and prune them back to 24 buds. If you are too lazy to prune, you might look into getting a couple of goats;O)
Malta?! Ok you tracked me out. Who do I know that makes a Girgentina wine? Half the farmers of the island. And they make white wine in the same process as they make red wine. It comes to a honey yellow white, which is far away from the fruit wine that a white wine should be.
Thanks for the varietal sugguestions. Syrah I have growing in another field . Doing quite fine. But my uncle sprays a lot of pesticides (and frankly dont know if they need it). But it is his field. So!
As for training its true that in Malta we have torrid summer, however we are surrounded by water, which makes for a very humid climate. So a trellised setup saves me from mold and backaches. Most vineyards in malta have been converted to a trellised installation successfully.
Most of the land will be kept with the old grapes. The new ones will just be for my consumption. (100L annually of wine)
DON'T do it, just plow it all under and plant walnut trees or olive trees. Grapes are too much trouble when you can buy them very cheap
I know that some say let it rest but I really don't know if it is necessary. For more feedback go to the web site
winepress.us
and sign up. There is a lot of traffic there and someone with experience will guide you.
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