How to Winterize Grape Plants
Grape plants naturally begin a process of hardening off in the fall after the grapes are harvested. The vines shed their leaves and enter a period of dormancy in preparation for cold weather. Grape growers in cold climates must give their plants special attention in the fall to protect them from cold damage and help them survive the winter. Does this Spark an idea?
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Instructions
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Grow grape plants that are hardy in your planting zone. Grapes bred for northern climates ripen early so the grapes can be harvested in time for the vines to harden off before the first frost.
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Reduce watering and do not fertilize after the grapes are harvested. This will help to ease the vines into dormancy.
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Keep weeds under control and treat any fungi or disease on your grape vines. Use a pre-emergent weed control product around your grape plants in the fall to reduce weeds throughout the winter.
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Protect your grape plants by mounding dirt, hay, or straw around the trunks of the vines. Make your mound high enough to cover the graft union (the place where the vine was grafted on to the rootstock).
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Prune your grapes at the end of the winter, just before they come out of dormancy. Do not prune in the fall, as pruning stimulates new growth that would be especially susceptible to the cold.
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Remove the mounded dirt, hay, or straw as soon as the risk of frost has passed but before buds on the vines begin to sprout. Leaving wet mulch around the roots can lead to fungal growth.
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