Everyone's favorite grape is a liana, a perennial woody culture. In nature, where there is a support, the grape bush forms many lashes, overgrows with a crown with a lot of foliage. A man grows this culture for the sake of sweet, juicy and fragrant berries.
Grapes are grown with a bush, tying the shoots to the trellis. The selected formation system is supported by annually cutting off unnecessary branches. If the bush is not formed, then the nutrients will go to the growth of shoots. As a result, part of the inflorescences will die, and inferior clusters will develop from the rest. At the same time, pruning and the formation of a grape bush are associated with causing wounds to it, which often do not heal well. Therefore, this procedure must be carried out competently, without causing much harm to the plant.
Choose a seedling
The beginning gardener needs to know that the grape seedlings have certain standards: the length from the heel to the top of the shoot should be at least fifty centimeters; color - light brown; four to five mature eyes are required; the length of the seedling itself (without shoot) is fifteen to twenty centimeters, and the diameter is not less than five millimeters. In addition, it should not be dried or damaged, necrotic spots and growths are unacceptable. There should be at least three roots, and they should be located on different sides.
Choose the desired form
It must meet a number of requirements:
- correspond to local climatic conditions and features of the selected grape variety;
- provide high yields;
- protect shrubs and crops from temperature fluctuations;
- provide the opportunity to regularly rejuvenate, trim bushes.
All forms are divided into six types:
- cupped;
- capitate;
- fan;
- single and bilateral;
- semi-fan;
- cordon.
The choice of form depends on the place where the bush develops, and on its variety.
The necessary subtleties
Grapes do not like neighborhood with poplar, walnut and other breeds with a powerful and developed root system. But it gets along well with bushes of currants and gooseberries, as well as strawberries. Experts advise sowing parsley under grape bushes, which protects it from defeat by phylloxera.
We begin to form a bush: year one
For the good growth of the grape bush, the first year after planting is especially important. The main task of the gardener is to grow one powerful and strong shoot during the summer. After the buds open and young shoots appear on them, the formation of a grape bush can begin. The first year is the time when all young shoots coming from the root should be cut or broken out. At the same time, single out the single most powerful one. Later it will turn into a perennial shoot (sleeve), which will be easier to shelter for the winter after autumn pruning. Its base will become the head of the bush, sleeves will diverge from it, from which, in fact, the bush will form.
Escape will need a trellis. To begin with, a peg is suitable, to which you need to attach the process. Periodically, at a distance of 1 meter from the ground along the entire length of the young vine, cut off the stepsons, leaving 1-2 leaves on them.
Formation Types
To increase the yield of the bush, it should be shaped so that all the nutrients flow evenly to all branches of the plant. The methods for forming a grape bush are different. For example, a four-arm fan system was developed for covering grapes. With it, not only increases productivity, but also maintains a constant balance of the root system and the leaf apparatus. The bush becomes viable. In addition, the ripening process of berries is accelerated. Agree, this is very important.
The formation of the grape bush according to the fan pattern is carried out quickly. This form is easy to maintain, but there are serious flaws. The most significant of them is the unreasonably high labor costs in the preparation and sheltering of grapes for the winter. Most often they use a non-standard fan-shaped formation, for partial shelter, without removing the vines from the trellis with high hilling.
Each gardener can decide for himself how to form a grape bush based on the conditions of his own plot. The form also depends on which variety you grow - covering, not covering or semi-covering.
Cordon formation
In recent years, this method has become especially common. Its main feature is the presence of one or two sleeves, which, as a rule, are located horizontally, vertically and even obliquely. On them are fruit links. For high-yielding varieties, it is recommended that this is the formation of a grape bush. A horizontal cordon is created as follows.
In the first year, one, maximum two young shoots are grown in the seedling. In the second year, one or two growing on opposite sides of the cordon are formed from them. Their length directly depends on the growth of shoots. The longer they are, the longer cordons can be formed from them. After buds bloom on the branches and shoots begin to develop very quickly, they should be thinned out, leaving only vegetative ones (thirty to forty centimeters apart). In autumn, young shoots are pruned, leaving no more than three eyes.
However, the formation of the grape bush does not end there. In the third and subsequent years, young fruit links appear on the left knots, which consist of shortened replacement knots and fruit arrows. The formation of the vine bush cordon method is performed on a vertical trellis. At first it can be replaced with a wooden peg.
Accelerated grape bush formation
The grape bush differs from other fruit plants in the rapid onset of fruiting. Often, after a year, he gives the first harvest. This feature can be used for even earlier fruiting. To apply this method, you need a strong seedling in the schoolhouse, which is then planted in a permanent place.
So, we need to grow from two to four shoots. At the end of May, their thickness should be at least seven millimeters. In early June, these shoots are left, and the shoots are cut. At this point, the young twigs already have five to seven leaves. After minting, the shoots are tied up in an inclined position, spreading them to the sides and secured to the trellis. After a week, stepson processes appear on them. Leave should be the top two. They are tied up vertically. The remaining stepsons are cut out. The main objective of this method is to grow as many strong vines in the first year as possible. Grapes must be regularly and abundantly watered, fed with mineral fertilizers.
The next year, depending on the strength of the young bush, the required number of shoots is left (so as not to overload it). The same can be said about the first crop. Leave one or two clusters "for testing." And that’s all.
The formation of a grape bush in spring
Experienced growers trim and form young vineyards only in spring. In subsequent years, it is advisable to perform this work in the fall, before sheltering the plant.
With the onset of the first heat, grapes begin to grow rapidly and develop. Quite often, dormant reserve buds wake up, new shoots grow, which are completely unnecessary - they only thicken the bush. Stepsons appear, which should be removed after the first sheet appears on them. The vines are significantly lengthened. Their ripening periods increase, therefore, pinching and chasing of young processes is required.
Shoot garter
From the vine, tied last year in a horizontal position, shoots appear in the spring. They should be tied to the trellis vertically. Gradually, the shoots become vines.
Bush load
Inflorescences appear on young vines. Depending on the variety, their number may be different. For a young bush, those that have increased productivity are dangerous. He devotes all his strength to ripening berries, so he is greatly weakened, as a result, the buds and vines do not have time to mature. Therefore, next year the harvest will be weak, and the bush will develop poorly. How many inflorescences to leave on a bush? No one will give you an exact answer and advice in absentia. Such knowledge comes with experience. The main thing is to adhere to the golden rule: do not load young bushes with the crop. Everything has its time.
Chasing Vines
This procedure is also carried out in the spring. Secateurs remove the upper part of the vine to well-developed leaves, where the diameter of the vine is close to the diameter of its main part.
Grapes are loved in our country by both adults and children. To get a large crop of these fragrant berries, learn how to properly care for young bushes.