Grapes for dummies

allybanana says...
Excellent Hayden grapes can grow well in pots and are a very tasty plant, they get a great gnarled old look a bit like bonsai after ten or so years. It is possible to search the forum for what other people have written on the subject, nice picture on this thread.

https://www.daleysfruit.com.au/forum/recommend-or-share-with-me-about-grape/


I recently bought a little book from the Daleys fruit tree nursery internet site, "pruning for fruit" I learnt a lot about grape training from this little book and its got the basics on soil and some good stuff on soil conditioning. If you live close to the coast and plan on buying any more grapes I would suggest looking for varieties that are mildew resistant and do well on the coast, look at grapes on this website or talk to the old gardeners in your locality. For what you have "although not sure of the variety", make sure they are placed outside in a well-ventilated position or else they could get covered in mildew.

I also suggest not to skimp on the potting mix get a good quality one, if you have good black soil were you are you can mix that with compost and potting mix but drainage is essential in pots and straight clay soils or heavy black soil are unlikely to allow drainage and oxygen penetration and allow good root growth in a pot. I recently got out the drill and put extra holes in some of my pots as I cut the potting mix with top soil and compost, as I find straight potting mix dries out to quickly. Good luck

Hayden says...
Km sorry* they are crimson seedless grapes I will check on the net if they are suitable.

Hayden says...
Thanks! I am going to try and build a trellis between my two grape vines as I have mentioned they will be grown i pots. I read a trellis for grapes needs to be horizontal and not vertical. Is this true as you hear of them growing up pergolas all the time.

Julie says...
I have grapes on a pergola, a very old one planted by previous owner. It is impossible to protect from birds, which puncture the fruit for moisture in summer.

So the grape I planted myself goes up about 1.5m, then left and right onto wires. This will be much easier to net.

Grapes on a pergola are very nice for shade, but not practical if you have thirsty birds in your garden.

allybanana says...
Im of the same conclusion pegolas are hard to manage for birds and this individual netting of grape bunches is a pain. I did it to the saltana grapes one year and they got so much mildew they were inedible.

I have a pegola i was thincking of covering with a grape i was wondering if i covered the top first with wire netting and gave it say a thirty cm skirt from the top and train the grape about 15cm below the wire about half way down th skirt, i could perhaps just streatch a net across the bottom and hook it up and enclose the wine. I know, i know a lot of stuffing around, on the wire is simpler. The old guys around here use rat traps for the black birds i am a bit worried about by-catch mysealf.

amanda says...
Has anyone had a go at making their own verjuice at all? I am wondering at what stage it is best to pick the fruit?

lenn says...
OK, but birds bite through pantyhose; close ensheathment by pantyhose encourages rot.

Roberta says...
As a child we had lots of grape vines in the backyard in North Perth. My grandfather used to choose the best looking bunches before they ripened and put them in light calico flour bags. Worked well and reused the bags every year just tied string loosely around the stem. Beautiful clean grapes and the birds still got a feed on the other bunches.