NEW OPPORTUNITIES FOR GROWING GRAPES IN ILLINOIS

Bill Shoemaker, Northern Region Viticulturist Illinois Grape Growers and Vintners Association

Grape Research at St Charles • • • •

Initiated in 1998 2 acres of grapes Primarily wine grapes Breeding, varieties, cultural practices and IPM issues • Support from IGGVA, State of Illinois

Why grow grapes at home?

Why grow grapes at home? • • • • •

Quality Fruit Landscape Potential Horticultural Passion Impressive Results Potential Utility

Fruit Quality of Home-Grown Grapes • The problem of grocery store produce • Variety selection • Fully ripened fruit • Diversity of flavors, textures • Control over production practices

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Landscape Potential • • • •

Vining habit Fence-row hedging Pergolas and Arbors An orderly home vineyard

Impressive Results • A manicured vineyard • An abundant crop • Year-round pleasure

The Grape-Growing Site • • • • • •

Light availability Elevation? Soil requirements – No big deal! A structure – trellis systems Easy, quick access Space requirements

Horticultural Passion • • • •

Grapes : A grower’s platform Management discipline Rewards for your effort Never a dull moment!

Potential Utility • • • •

Fresh eating Jams and Jellies Juice The emergence of hardy wine grapes • Health benefits

Trellis systems • • • • •

4-armed Kniffin Single High Wire Geneva Double Curtain (GDC) Vertical Shoot Position (VSP) Trellis Systems Ad Nauseum

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Grape Training Systems

Single High Wire Trellis System

Grape Varieties For Northern Illinois

Utility Grape Varieties

• Utility Grapes • Seedless Table Grapes • Wine Grapes

Seedless Table Grapes • • • • • • • •

Canadice Concord Seedless Reliance Marquis Vanessa Jupiter Mars Venus

• • • • • •

Concord Fredonia Niagara Delaware Catawba Swenson Red

Wine Grapes – White • • • • • • • •

St Pepin (pistillate) Valvin Muscat La Crescent Brianna Vidal Blanc Seyval Blanc Traminette Chardonel

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Wine Grapes – Red • • • • • • • •

Marquette Marechal Foch Frontenac St Croix Noiret Norton Chambourcin Vinifera varieties?

Establishing grapes – Year 1 • Previous season – prepare site • Buy quality nursery stock rootstocks? • Provide weed free planting spot • Dig oversized hole • Spread roots without entanglement • Plant to original soil line • Compact soil • Water in thoroughly • Add starter fertilizer

Establishing Grapes – Year 2 • • • • • • • • • •

Set up trellis system Provide stake for each plant Fertilize lightly with nitrogen Cut plant back to a stub, 2 buds Train shoots up stakes Tie up loosely to the stake Prune off lateral shoots on trunks Turn, or direct laterals onto wires Shape the trunks and cordons No Fruit! No Weeds!

Sources for Vines - Nurseries • • • • • • •

Double A Vineyards (NY) Grafted Grapevine Nursery (NY) Lincoln Peak Nursery (VT) Winterhaven Nursery (MN) St Francois Nursery (MO) Silver Creek Nursery (IL) Iowa Grapevines (IA)

Caring for Grapes – Year 1 • • • • • • •

Water when Mom Nature doesn’t Fertilize lightly until mid-summer Prevent weed competition ! Don’t prune or train, just grow! Mulch is good, but remove in Fall Let grapes do most of the work Watch out for Japanese Beetle

Establishing Grapes – Year 3 • Finish development of vines into the training system of choice • Prune off unwanted shoots asap • Allow only one cluster per bearing shoot, remove others early • Fruit is borne on 1-year old wood! • Let the plants thrive • Practice canopy management • Maintain weed-free growing zone

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Establishing Grapes – Year 4 • • • • • •

Allow full crop on strong vines Minimize crop on weak vines Limit clusters to 1-2 per shoot Beware diseases, insects Keep vines weed-free Train yourself in canopy management techniques

Shoot thinning • • • • • •

Early in the season Remove unproductive shoots Shoots without fruit Shoots lagging behind Shoots crowding the canopy Usually about 4-5 weeks after budbreak

Cluster thinning • Remove clusters that contribute to overcropping and impede quality • Remove all 3rd and 4th clusters on a shoot • Can be done before or after flowering and fruit set • Can be done later if needed for vine vitality and strength

What is Canopy Management? • The new vegetation is the canopy • Managing canopies improves plant health and fruit quality • Shoot Thinning • Cluster thinning • Shoot positioning • Leaf removal (limited) • Cropload management

Shoot positioning • Grooming of the canopy • Facilitated by good shoot thinning practices • Combing down shoots • Or, tucking shoots under wires • The earlier and more often, the better the results • Usually just before flowering and as needed afterward

Leaf pulling, lateral removal • Removing counterproductive vegetation to improve light conditions in the fruit zone • Remove first two leaves on shoots • Remove lateral branches in the fruit zone • Should be done after fruit set, up till veraison (berry color change) • Laterals may need a second round of removal

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Cropload Management • Balancing the vine’s need for energy with fruit production • Gauging the strength of vines • Managing crop potential to avoid overcropping • New bud development • Overwinter hardiness • Next year’s crop

Grapevine Mineral Nutrition • Modest inputs • pH between 5.8 and 7.2 • Nitrogen annually at about .1 lb of actual N per vine • Soil test results for other elements • Avoid over-fertilizing • Once mature, maybe nothing! • Balancing vegetation and fruit

Diseases of Grapes • • • • • • •

Resistant Varieties! Avoid dense canopies Air movement Thin out unnecessary shoots Keep from over-cropping fruit Lime-sulfur dormant spray Web-based disease guides

Mature Grapevine Care • • • • • •

Mineral Nutrition Water Management Diseases Insects Weeds Animal Pests

Water Management • • • • • • •

Grapes tend to be deep-rooted Water only when clearly needed Drought stress is uncommon If needed, then be consistent As fruit matures, slow down Once dormant, cease watering Be prepared next season

Insect Pests of Grapes • • • • • •

Phylloxera Grape Berry Moth Japanese Beetle Yellowjackets MALB (Asian Lady Beetle) Web-based insect pest guides

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Weed Management in Grapes • • • • • •

Competition for resources Perennial weeds problematic Grass competition, esp. early Mulch? Roundup? Beware 2-4,D, Trimec, Chemlawn!

Harvest Time in Grapes

Animal Pests of Grapes • • • • • • •

Rodents in young vines Deer Fruit-loving critters BIRDS! Exclusion Noise-makers? Visual deterrents

Fruit Maturation • • • • • • •

Making Wine • • • • • • •

A fascinating process Fruit + yeast = wine Many things can go wrong Educate yourself Learn from others where possible Be prepared before harvest Equip yourself well

Veraison pH Acid development Sugar development Taste Texture Wine potential

Typical mistakes • Failure to select quality fruit – Wrong variety – Contaminated fruit – Wrong stage of development

• • • •

Harvest too early, or too late Failure to protect the wine Failure to refine the wine Too eager to drink it!!

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Winemaking references • Winemaker magazine • Local winemaking clubs • Book, “Modern Winemaking” by Philip Jackisch • Book, “Techniques in Home Winemaking” by Daniel Pambianchi • Book, “The Complete Handbook of Winemaking”, AWS

Download or purchase this book!

Grape growing references • Midwest Grape Production Guide – http://ohioline.osu.edu/b919/pdf/b919.pdf

• “The Grape Grower - A Guide to Organic Viticulture”, by Lon Rombaugh • IGGVA - www.illinoiswine.com • Illinois Fruit and Veg Newsletter http://www.ipm.uiuc.edu/ifvn/index.html

Viticultural support Bill Shoemaker – Retired Sr. Research Specialist – Food Crops University of Illinois Department of Crop Sciences [email protected]

Thanks for joining me!

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