Ohio Grape Electronic Newsletter

8 July 2005

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Content:
New Viticulture Book from OSU
Canopy Management Reminders
Grape-Wine Workshops

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New Viticulture Book from OSU:

By Imed Dami, Viticulturist OARDC
 
Contemplating to establish a commercial vineyard in the Midwest and can’t find information for your unique growing conditions? Or wanting to expand your existing vineyard operation and looking for new research information on varieties and innovative cultural practices? Whether you are a novice or a seasoned grower, this guide will suit your needs and answer most of your questions regarding growing grapes in the Midwest.
 
This is the only comprehensive guide (see attached flyer) available in the Midwest covering all aspects of wine and table grape production in colder regions of the US including the Midwest and Northeast. It describes the physiology of the grapevine; site and variety selection; vineyard establishment; cultural practices including pruning; training; canopy management; soil management and fertilization; disease and pest management including weeds, insects, and wildlife; and harvesting and marketing. 
 
In this volume you will find a discussion of:

• Recommendation on new table and wine cultivars that performed well in the Midwest
• Special cultural practices for winter protection of cold tender cultivars
• New development in establishing a new vineyard
• Step-by-step descriptions of pruning and training young and mature vines
• Improving fruit quality or fixing production or vigor problems using canopy management
• Innovative training systems (with illustrations) that increase yield and enhance quality
• The most comprehensive information currently available in the region on Integrated Pest Management (biology,     identification, and management)
• Improved methods for vineyard floor management and fertilization

 
Over 30 years of research and over 100 years of combined experience and expertise from specialists at the Ohio State University and Purdue University, plus industry and grower experience and innovation are brought together in this production guide, sure to be an invaluable resource for the grape grower. 
 
This 155-page guide is generously illustrated with 114 colored photographs and drawings, 18 tables, and a pullout centerfold illustrating step-by-step vine training and common training systems. A detailed appendix outlines additional viticulture resources and a glossary of common terms.
 

Copies of this guide may be purchased from Media Distribution, Communications and Technology, The Ohio State University, 385 Kottman Hall, 2021 Coffey Road, Columbus, OH 43210-1044. Phone: 614-292-1607. Fax: 614-292-1248. E-mail: pubs@ag.osu.edu. Visa and MasterCard accepted.

Canopy Management Reminders

By David Scurlock, OARDC

I Suckering is the process where unwanted shoots are removed from the trunk up to the fruiting zone of the vine.  It is necessary to remove these shoots so that the vines energies are not spent in an area of the vine that is not contributing in a positive way to the vine health or the ripening process of the fruit.  This process of suckering should already be completed by now and only the suckers that you kept for replacement trunks should remain.  These replacement parts should be tied up so they will grow straight and not be mowed over or herbicided so they will be viable if needed next spring. One to two shoots are usually enough for a vine where you think a replacement trunk will be needed.
 
II Tucking is generally used where you are growing your vines in a vertically shoot positioned system such as the Low Bi-lateral cordon, Guyot, Scott Henry, Smart Dyson or Pendlebogan. This is an on going process through the growing season that allows the canopy to remain narrow and upright exposing the leaves and fruit to the sunlight and spray material to reduce rot.  The shoots are first tucked between the catch wires when they are around 10 inches in growth and every subsequent 10 inches of growth thereafter until the shoots grow above the trellis height and are then hedged. The shoots are held in place with sets of catch wires that can be either fixed or moveable.  Moveable catch wires offer the convenience of being able to drop them at pruning time to lessen the problem of pruning around all of the wires.
 
III Plucking or removal of one or two leaves around the fruit from fruit set to veraison increases exposure of the cluster to sunlight and allows better spray penetration on the fruit and shorter drying time to help prevent fruit rots.  Work that has been done at OARDC has shown the benefits of increased soluble solids and the reduction of fruit rots from leaf pulling or plucking.  The leaves are generally removed so that 60% of the fruit is visible on the shaded side of the vine or for instance the east side of the vine that is planted to north south rows.  Leaf plucking after fruit set allows the grape berries to acclimate to the sunlight better than to expose the fruit on or after veraison when the sun is more intense and subjecting the berries more to sunburning.
 
IV Shoot Positioning is the combing or separating of the shoots on a vine that is trained to a Single Curtain or Geneva Double Curtain training system.  This process is usually done at the end of June and repeated at the end of July.  The operation can be performed either manually or mechanically. Mechanically by brushes mounted on a tractor that physically separate the shoots and position them downward.  Manually the shoots are separated and forced to hang downward.  It is important to allow the top of the cordon to be exposed to the sunlight to ripen and color the fruit and ripen the spurs for next years crop.  The other benefits allow for better air penetration into the canopy to promote drying and lessen fruit rot, ease of harvesting if hand picked and ease of pruning if hand pruned.
 
Grape-Wine Workshops

by Imed Dami, OARDC

The Grape-Wine Program at the Department of Horticulture and crop Science at OARDC is offering a series of workshops (see attached). Topics will include current situation in vineyards and questions regarding grape growing and wine making in Ohio. Imed Dami, Viticulturist, Dave Scurlock, Viticulture Assistant, and Todd Steiner, Extension Enologist will be present to answer your questions. We encourage you to attend and bring your questions with you regarding your vineyard/winery operations. Also, take this opportunity to visit commercial vineyards and wineries and interact with the growers and winemakers. For your convenience, you can choose the location closest to you to attend. We look forward to seeing you there!