How to Build Concord Grape Arbors
If you're about to start growing Concord grapes, look forward to planting an authentic piece of Americana. Discovered growing wild in Concord, Massachusetts, in the late 19th century, this indigenous grape variety quickly became a favorite of farmers who marveled at the fruit's ability to withstand harsh weather conditions. Early harvests don't diminish the juicy taste of Concord grapes, and if you're in it for the long haul, you'll be pleased to learn that while grapes take around three years to mature, the well-tended arbor will give you up to forty years' worth of sweet crops. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- 6 x 6 wood posts (uprights)
- 4 x 4 wood posts (crossbeams)
- Posthole digger
- Concrete
- Saw
- Hammer
- Nails
- String
Instructions
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Start your Concord grape project right by obtaining healthy plants from a reputable nursery. Ask for recommendations from professionals so you purchase cultivars that come from hardy strains able to fight off disease. (No Concord grape variety is completely disease resistant.)
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Install your Concord grape plantings around 4 feet apart so there's plenty of room to install the arbors between the rows. Tie plants to stakes so the vines will grow up rather than down, thus keeping the young plants from being assaulted by weeds, pests and high water, any of which could destroy the cultivars before they have a chance to start climbing. Until you have healthy vine growth, arbors won't be required.
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Cut lumber into sections to fashion posts that are no shorter than 18 inches or expect to replace them in a year or so. Follow recommendations of veteran grape growers to create a long-lasting arbor measuring no more than 10 feet ,or you could have problems managing your plantings. Use a posthole digger to create two rows of six holes, each arranged in 5-foot intervals along the vacant space between the grape plant rows.
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Cut notches into each of the vertical post tops to create beam and fence slots. Use a ladder for stability when you secure posts into predug holes so the notches face each other and create a U into which the shorter crossbeams will be placed.
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Pour concrete into the holes to stabilize the posts. Place the smaller wood posts into the notched areas horizontally, and nail them in place. Use the longest nails you can manage to add stability to each section of the arbor. Continue to dig holes, sink and stabilize posts and nail crossbeams into notched junctures until you've addressed all of the rows in your Concord grape nursery.
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Use string to fasten the Concord grape vines to the arbor so they can begin to wrap around the posts and crossbeams during their second year of growth. Prune liberally to encourage strong growth in and around the arbor structure. Make it a practice to check arbors for rotting or damaged sections regularly. Expect the string to rot away as the vines develop. Look forward to grapes in season three and thereafter.
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References
Resources
- Photo Credit bunch of grapes image by kolesn from Fotolia.com
