grape porn!
 

now that i have your attention....SmileWavy

put purple table grapes out front some 10 years ago kinda on a lark. learned a lot over the years on prune, vine train and such. the 1st few years the fruit was really good, but not so much due to young vines. the last 6-7 years i have battled a dark dry mold that infects both the stock n vine, so bad in fact i throw out 30-40 lbs of tainted grapes every year come fall prune. the vines!

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ive used both a copper and now a sulfur emulsion in an effort to fight the mold. not till this year have i done it every 2 weeks or 10 days like clock work. i am also keeping it much more trimmed back this year in an effort to keep it off the lawn & junipers. trim the shooters off, is this bad? less foliage also makes the sprayer sessions easier. am i on the right track here my farming brethren? any hints on the mold? a bit more, i have another vine in the back yard that is a bit different strain & it does not get the mold???:confused: bonus points for noticing the 23 car tucked in the garage...


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hoping this year's dedication pays off with pounds of grapes. you can see the sulfur on the leaves in white and ive sprayed the fruit since before it was even a grape, just fuzzy stuff. will i poison myself or people i share them with with the sulfur?

now, without further ado,, as i promised,,,up close grape porn...


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any insite or know how would be coveted.

t

So your neighbors can ask how're they hangin? Give them plenty of water now. I mean soak the ground.

They fog the vineyards here all the time with sulfur and other 'who knows what'.

I should know more, as I have lived a midst the vines for over 20 years.


KT

Sulfur, not so bad, Arsenic that's another story. Nice "hang" there.

Money, check it
Pests of Agriculture, Floriculture, and Turf—UC IPM Pest Management Guidelines and More

happen to notice the frequency they will do a specific field? ive got plenty of the "who knows what", but i will stick to sulfur for the grapes..:D

great site tobra! i book marked that for future reference fir sure.

t

Some more grape porn. My grape is from Toby's plant. He gave me a "stick" in a dixie cup about 5 years ago. This is what she looks like now. Thanks Toby!

I haven't sprayed them with anything this year. Now you have me scared. I think I'll give them some sulfer dust this weekend.
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Sulfur compounds are commonly used for wine grapes (and you should plant wine grapes!).

Pruning is no big issue and common (perpetual) for wine growers.

Seems like the spraying comes after unseasonal moisture.
I'll ask one of my neighbors more when I see them.

I can see vines out of every window of the house, I should know more about this.


KT

this was a really wet year late, I had peach leaf curl pretty bad despite spraying copper three times(more like 5 with all the rain), wonder if sulfur is cool for peaches, will have to look that up.

My buddy has some chardonnay vines on the side of his house, need to do something with those besides eat them. I bet Hugh could grow grapes on those hills by his house and get an ag exemption on taxes. Solar power pumps, fans et al, write off and free water pumping etc

Ag exemptions are really worthwhile, if you can qualify.

that rules dan! chris beers and a few others have "clones" of my original two as well... how have the grapes been? if what you gots workin works let it be.. mine did not always mold so i don't know what brought it on or keeps it from the back yard vines.. do you trim yours back to a basic frame each fall? that by far is the best report back ive had on any of the offspring..

flat out, they just look cool & even with the mold issues they are fun. not many 1st time by walkers can not stop & look starting about this time of year..

The grapes were not so good until last year. They had a tendency to split right about harvest time. I can't really remember having any mold issues with them. We did have some leaf curling though in the begining. This year they look like they are going to rock & roll!
In the off season I clip off all but the main established runners that I want to train up and over our arbor. No method to my madness, just channeling my grandfather's gardening talent. :) RIP grandpa Jacob!
The grape has its own dedicated drip ring around the stump so it gets plenty of water. I just wonder if its enough???
As to your grape's offspring...I think shes doing okay. If nothing else, I love to look at it on the arbor even if she doesn't put out. ;) My eventual plan is to start a different variety on the other side of the arbor and train it over in the oposite direction.

update
 

mold remains at bay with the spraying and trimmin back of the aggressive shooters. kinda weird too in that the trimming has caused the vine to continue to produce grapes that are much further behind in the development. never done that before.

http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1310229226.jpg

trimming will just sunburn the grapes. It's more likely that the weather has delayed the growing season.

end game
 

so it ended the same way... about 30 lbs of dust, molded grapes:(


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the couple i did find that were lightly tainted and cleaned up were too freakin good. so bummed.

t

go remove each leaf with mold on it and put it in the trash (NOT the compost)
- powdery mildew survives composting

they also tell vintners to clear away any undergrowth (tho one top Or. Pinot producer told me he uses grass at the base of his vines to modulate their development - slow them down when > 3 years old)

you are super clear down there & doesn't look all that shady, so not sure why you are having mold probs. - call your county agric. extension office and get advice from them

you do need to trim the eff out of those vines tho...