Content
Growing grape bushes is not easy. Especially when it comes to reproduction. You can get new bushes in different ways: planting seedlings, cuttings and grafting. Today we will talk about how to get a vine using one of the vegetative methods - cuttings.
Autumn propagation of grapes gardeners consider the most successful, and especially the cuttings method of planting in the ground. After all, young plants with the arrival of spring receive an impetus for development, and the first bunches are removed from them already in the second year. How to plant autumn grapes cuttings or shanks, what points you should pay attention to - this is the topic of the article.
Important nuances
If you want to get cuttings yourself, you should take care of healthy planting material well before planting. The shanks are cut from the mother bushes, which have shown themselves perfectly during the fruiting period, without the slightest signs of disease.
Cuttings with mechanical damage, elongated internodes cannot be used for propagation. Thinned and curved planting material is also discarded.
Mother bushes are chosen in advance, you can even make marks on them, so as not to confuse branches in the fall due to the rapid growth of the vine. They begin to cook the cuttings when the foliage is flying from the vines. Cuttings or shanks are prepared from the grapes that have matured.
How to tell if a vine is ripe:
- branches turn light brown;
- a green shoot, if taken in hand, will be much colder than a vine ready for grafting;
- ripe cuttings placed in a 2% iodine solution will change its color: the solution will turn blue. Fatty shoots are not suitable for cutting cuttings, since they are deprived of the ability to give a root system.
- cuttings must be at least 10 cm in diameter, with 3 or 4 living buds;
- the length of the shank is about half a meter.
Preparing cuttings
How the grafting of the vine is carried out and the preparation of the planting material depends on whether the planted grapes will take root. Therefore, this work must be taken seriously.
In other cases, the cutting material is wrapped in a wet napkin and placed in a cellophane bag.
- Use a sharp knife or pruner to cut the cuttings. The main thing is that when cutting, there are no creases and flattening of the bark. Pay attention to the cut: it will be white when the cut is ripe. The eyes on the vine should sit firmly and not crumble when pressed lightly.
- During grafting, the cut is made obliquely, and the lower part of the incision is made next to the eye, and the upper part is 2 or 3 cm higher than the buds left. The cuttings are placed in water for 48 hours, then the cut is treated with melted paraffin and again in water for a day, but already with a stimulant for the growth of the root system.
- Cuttings are placed in sawdust or soil, to which a root growth stimulator has been added. In the future, the seedlings are watered, preventing the top clod of earth from drying out.
If in the fall for some reason it is not possible to plant the cuttings in a permanent place, they can be kept tied in bunches in the basement until spring or dug in trenches on the street and sheltered for the winter.
We offer you to watch a video of how grape cuttings are prepared:
Soil for grapes
Planting grapes by cuttings in the fall can be carried out in any soil, since grapes are an unpretentious plant in this regard. Although there are some nuances. Table and dessert grapes love different soil and plant them differently.
If you decide to propagate table grapes with shanks, then it is best to plant them in humus-rich soil on the slopes of the hills. Moreover, the groundwater in this place should be at a depth of three meters.
Vineyards feel great on stony and dark soil. It warms up better, because it attracts the sun's rays more strongly.
Soil types that grapes love:
- clayey;
- weakly carbonate or carbonate;
- light colored sandstone;
- black soil;
- red soil;
- sandy loam soil;
- sierozem;
- light and dark chestnut soils.
In short, the soil should be light, breathable and fertile. During the growing season, after planting the grape cuttings, the soil must be constantly loosened.
Planting holes or trenches are prepared in advance, fertilizer is applied to them. Before planting the cuttings, the soil should settle well.
Choosing a place for landing
If we are talking about planting grapes with stems in the fall in the ground, you need to choose the right place:
- You can't plant a vine there, an old plantation has just been uprooted. Spores of fungal and viral diseases, as well as insects, can remain in the soil. Planting can only be started after 2-3 years.
- Airing is important for the vine, so don't plant cuttings between trees and in the shade.
- Saplings obtained from cuttings are planted in the direction from south to north. In this case, the vineyard will be lit from morning to evening, the whole plantation will receive enough heat and light.
Planting pit preparation
The grapes are planted in pits or trenches. When digging, the soil is thrown on two sides. In one direction, the upper one, with fertile soil from a depth of no more than 30 cm. On the other parapet, the rest of the earth is laid. She is then, in general, removed from the site. The width of the trench should be at least 80-90 centimeters.
If the planting of grapes by cuttings in the fall is carried out in pits, then they should be 80x80 cm.The depth of the trench and pit is also at least 80 cm.The place of planting of cuttings should be spacious, since the growing grapes have a powerful root system, it should not feel constrained.
The bottom is covered with drainage (fine gravel can be used) on top, it is necessary to lay at least two buckets of humus and mineral fertilizers.
The humus and fertilizers are mixed, a layer of fertile soil previously removed from the pit is poured on top. The fact is that it is impossible to plant the shanks directly on the humus. They will get burned, the development of the root system will not occur.
Planting cuttings
Planting grape shanks is not such an easy job, it requires attention and patience. The harvest depends on how correctly the future grapes will be planted.
It would be nice to watch a detailed video before starting work, because every gardener does it differently:
And now about how to plant cuttings correctly:
- Cuttings are planted in autumn in October. Work can be carried out before the first freezing of the soil.
- There must be at least 2.5 meters between the planted plants.
- An indent of 3 meters is made between the vine rows.
- The stalk is buried in the soil and buried in earth and trampled on the ground around it.When planting grapes, you need to ensure that at least two buds remain on the surface.
- After that, a plastic bottle is put on each stalk and the earth is spilled.
When the water is absorbed, the soil must be loosened in order to restore the access of oxygen to the depth. Since the planting of grapes in the fall is carried out at a temperature close to zero, the cuttings should be immediately covered with needles. You can also use sawdust or peat. The height of a mound that can protect grape plantings from frost must be at least 30 cm.
Already in the fall, an excellent root system is formed on the shanks, so in the spring the rapid vegetative development of a young seedling begins.
Instead of a conclusion - advice
Everyone knows that grapes are a heat-loving plant. The root system cannot withstand temperatures below -5 degrees. Therefore, after planting the cuttings, they mulch it, and the seedlings are covered for the winter.
When planting cuttings, direct the eyes to the south or in the direction of the trellis. Then it will be easier to work with grapes.
When the first snow falls, even a small amount, it is advisable to pour it with a mound on young plantings.
