How to Graft Grape Vines
Grape growers often graft to change from one variety of grapes to another. Sometimes grape growers want to change the variety of grapes because the changing market. Grafting also improves the quality of some grapes as well as making a good grape more resistant to disease and bugs. Grafting takes several months to complete, with the work beginning in January or February. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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1
Find a vine that is at least three years old. Do not use a vine that is ten or more years old. The entire vine must be healthy and disease free. The trunk should be least 1 ½ inches wide.
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2
Choose a section of vine, in January or February, which has five to twelve nodes on it. Cut this section of vine making sure it is at least 12 inches long.
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3
Store the dormant vine in a cool, dark place until time to graft to the new vine. Keep the cut vine stored at a temperature that is 36 degrees F or below.
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4
Keep the section of vine moist. Do not allow it to dry out or to form buds. Cool temperatures prevent growing.
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5
Graft vines in the early spring. Make sure to wait until all danger of frost has passed and the temperatures are consistently 50 to 60 degrees F. Do not perform any grafting once buds have started showing signs of growth.
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6
Find a t-bud on a healthy grape vine. Cut the vine off just above the t-bud. Trim off any other dead vines off the rest of the plant.
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Use a grafting knife to make a horizontal bleed cut, ¼-inch deep, 1-inch below the t-bud to allow the vine to bleed from this point. Make sure the vine does not bleed at the t-bud, as this will not allow the bud to heal and the graft to take.
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8
Use a saw to make a vertical 2-inch slit in the vine.
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9
Trim the end of the section of vine cut in January to form a flat point. Insert the flat point of the section into the vertical slit of the vine.
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10
Wrap the graft with grafting rubber or electrical tape to hold it in place.
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11
Water the vine as usual.
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