Grapes - this is a plant characterized by almost immense growth, and pruning grapes allows you to keep it in the framework you need, for example, the height of some part of the wall of your house or balcony. Some gardeners cut the grapes in the spring, due to the fact that they adhere to the principle, so as not to overwinter. And experts say that grape pruning is best done in the fall.
When grapes are pruned in the spring, laying and covering the sleeves and vines for the winter, they are knitted in a bunch, which, in turn, will contain those vines that have matured, and those vines that have died out after frost. Such unripe and frosty vines contain moisture. In the spring sun, it will cause mold and rot, since the temperature in the shelter will be warm (more than five degrees). Mold can harm healthy, matured vines by hitting them.
Pruning grapes in the spring leads to the flow of grapes juice. During autumn pruning, plugs form in the places of vine pruning, which prevents the juice from flowing, it will only drip a little. The people call this effect "grape cry."
When pruning the grapes in the spring, the pruned vine does not have time to cork, and therefore the wounds in the places of cuttings will be open. If you pick up such grapes on a column of grape arch, its juice will flow down the vines and fall on the kidneys, which will get wet and die.
The most difficult thing is to get a full-fledged seedling in the first year, because, not having time to ripen, it can freeze in the fall.
The growth of the seedling after the first year can reach from 0.5 to 1.5 meters, and the number of ripened buds of the vine can be 4 - 5 pieces. Pruning of grapes should be done a few centimeters up from a kidney that has matured.
Some experiment by cutting the vine and replacing the kidneys. The size of the berries eventually becomes large. By the end of the summer season, it becomes noticeable that the appearance of some of the vines is not very lively, so what to do with them?
Upon the arrival of autumn, all this vine must be cut so that the fruits receive as much nutrition as possible. And in damp and cold summers, the vine may not mature at all. In autumn frosts, it can break off, like icicles. In this case, it is necessary that the bush takes a long shape. This trimming of the sleeves will yield the next year's harvest thanks to the kidneys that are sleeping.
With this pruning, both the grape brush and the size of the berries will become larger. It will also speed up the ripening time of berries and make it easier to care for your grape bushes when the vegetation begins.
Practical Guide - How to Prune the Grapes
How is a grape bush formed? How to prune grapes?
In the summer, each sleeve kidney can be given several grape brushes and long branches - vines. It may well be one brush of grapes, and one vine.
Such a sleeve may well be left with one vine and one knot of substitution. The rest of the sleeve can be cut off and completely discarded. For further harvest, leave the vine with a thickness of 7 to 8 millimeters.
After pruning, the vine should have 6 to 12 buds on it, it all depends on what size you want to get the bunch. If there are few kidneys, then the bunch will be heavy. The substitution knot should ultimately contain 2 to 3 kidneys. Trimming must be done directly on the site.
The fruiting vine is left only if it has matured well enough. Pruning will be effective and useful if done in the fall before shelter. Pruning grapes in the spring will lead to the effect of "crying" vines.
Using the example of pruning one sleeve, we showed how to prune grapes. Use the same principle if you need to trim the remaining sleeves.
Any caring gardener and owner need to observe and analyze the development of his vine bushes. This will allow you to acquire the necessary skills.
Remember that pruning grapes in spring is less effective than in autumn. Please note that when pruning the grapes at a sufficiently high distance from the ground, it is necessary to strictly observe safety rules.