How to cover young grapes for winter
Frosts negatively affect the root system and buds of a young plant, so gardeners use special coverings that do not let grapes die in winter. With your help, you can grow plantations with frost-resistant varieties and in cold Siberia.
When to cover grapes for the winter?
The root system of grapes freezes faster than the buds – if the temperature o t-9 to o-14 ° C comes when such a climate is the norm in your region, you should seriously think about protecting a variety with a low degree of frost resistance.
| The degree of hardiness of the variety (maximum permissible air temperature without protection) | Number of surviving buds without protection, % | Variety example | recommendations |
| Low (-13 … -17 °C) | up to 40 | Rizamat, female finger | If the winter promises to be harsh, protection is prepared in advance at an average daily air temperature of +5 … -2 ° C. Depending on the region, work begins in late October – early December. Remember that grapes in frost become very fragile, so it is dangerous to bend them. |
| Average (-18 … -21 °С) | 40-60 | Original, Anyuta | |
| Increased (-23 … -27 °C) | 60-80 | Straczski, Valentin | |
| High (-25 … -28 °С) | 80-100 | Lydia |
Covering material
Cover the plant for the winter with plant material, which may contain fungus or pests. To avoid infection, spread the branches and tops on the floor, thoroughly treat them with chemicals – pesticide and fungicide and dry them.
Possibilities for covering grapes for the winter
Each method of protection is suitable for a particular variety and climatic conditions. It is important to remember that preparations for wintering for young grapes begin in August. It is necessary to stop watering, cut off the tops of shoots so that the branches begin to prepare for the cold, and treat them with copper sulfate. Autumn pruning is not required.
Covering
In this way you can cover all young grapes (in the first year of life) and mature resistant bushes, which are grown in the southern regions. Exact information:
- Description: Near the shoot, pour a mound of soil 10-25 cm high and sprinkle it with sawdust or leaves.
- Advantages: it protects the roots from frost. Fallen snow is an additional protection.
- Disadvantages: Not suitable for cold climates, the buds can suffer from severe frosts.
Semi-covering
This protection of young grapes for the winter protects the cilia, which lie closer to the ground. The method is relevant for varieties that have been bred in temperate climates with a medium to low degree of frost resistance. Overview of the semi-open cover:
- Description: The trunk (the lower part of the bush) is covered with a floor, and nearby damask with insulating material (straw, sack of linen, film).
- Advantages: The method is not expensive, protects the root system.
- Disadvantages: Sudden frosts can destroy unprotected buds.
Completely
Cover young grapes with this method is appropriate in regions with frequent changes in temperature and periodic frosts up to 20 ° C. Suitable for all varieties with a low degree of frost resistance. Particulars of detailing:
- Description: The vine is removed from the trellis (support), the leaves are cut off and trimmed. The strong and healthy shoots are tied together and placed on the floor. The bush is covered with insulating material (cloth, clothes, an old everyday blanket) and wrapped in film. The film should be stretched so that the buds do not come into contact with it. On sunny days, the material heats up, creating a charm – the optimal environment for the growth of the fungus. The structure is pressed to the floor with an iron arc and covered with a small layer of soil.
- Advantages: Reliably protects against frost.
- Disadvantages: If the weather is warm for a long time, you have to open the shelter regularly to avoid the greenhouse effect.
Dry
Dry protection grapes.
This method can safely cover grapes of every variety for the winter and protect them from severe frosts. Dry shelters are often used in regions with cold, harsh climates. Precise information:
- Description: A small ditch is dug near the grapevine. The branches are carefully bent and with the help of a metal arch laid on the ground, which is covered with dry material – needles, straw, dry leaves, reeds. The optimal layer is 10-15 cm, at the end of the ditch is closed with one of the types. The first method is closed with slate or foil, leaving room for ventilation. For this purpose, you can use several cut-off bottles. The second method is suitable if there is no opportunity to dig a hole, otherwise the roots will be exposed. You build a hut from boards that are pressed in and covered with roofing material. The height of the house is 50-70 cm, the lower edges of the structure is covered with earth, and the ends are covered when the temperature drops below + 8 ° C.
- Advantages: You can reliably cover young grapes for the winter. The dry room provides good ventilation and protection from frost, and the above-ground wooden tent can be used repeatedly.
- Disadvantages: material costs.
mistake
It is very important to properly cover young grapes for the winter, otherwise they will lose most of their buds. Based on the feedback of inexperienced gardeners, a list of more frequent mistakes has been compiled:
How to cover young grapes for winter
Winter cold and temperature fluctuations ruin vineyards as much as pests and diseases, and sometimes even more. Seedlings that have been planted outdoors in the fall rather than in a school (a separate part of the garden that is used for seedlings, “offspring” and other young plants separated from the mother plant) are most susceptible to the damaging effects of low temperatures. .
There are several options from which to choose the most suitable for a particular area with its climatic properties and a particular grape variety. Agrotechnical measures to protect young grapes from frosts are simple, they do not require much time and money. Therefore, it is better to take care of the wintering in the autumn months in order to safely withstand the spring.
- Is it necessary to cover young grapes for the winter?
- When to cover
- In the Moscow suburbs in the middle belt
- In the Urals
- In Siberia
- In the Leningrad region
- Pruning – is it so necessary?
- Fertilizing
- Treatment against illnesses and pests
- How to cover a young grape bush for the winter: video
Is it necessary to cover young grapes for the winter?
In any case, experienced winemakers rely on wintering – except in those climatic zones where there are no sub-zero temperatures in winter. The harsher the winter, the more thoroughly you need to prepare the winter cover for young grapes. In order to protect a vineyard with young seedlings from the cold as best as possible, care must be taken to create a reliable, complete protection that will protect the entire mother rootstock.
The most dangerous thing that can happen to a vine is icing. Only placement can save it. Do not be afraid that frosts will be much weaker than predicted and the well covered plant will end up in greenhouse conditions (which is fraught with premature bud break).
Bypass design is based on the possibility of artificial ventilation, when the cocoon created by blankets, foils and other things, with the risk of a greenhouse effect when warmed, air with minus or cool temperatures and warm air goes out. This procedure avoids rotting and early emergence.
If the climate of the region leaves the grapes without protection or with minimal protection for the winter, but frosts suddenly come, there are methods that can rightly be called anti-crisis. The first is thoroughly ducking the cilia to the surface of the ground, fixing them with staples and pouring a sufficient layer of soil over the plant. You should get a briar formation along the entire length of the vine. If the temperature has dropped severely to critical and such an earth tent cannot fully protect young grapes, it is recommended to save the vine at night by means of fires made near the bushes. Such a measure can be used only for the southern regions, in which frosts are rare, and if they happen, they last no more than 1-2 days.
The correct design of the shelter taking into account the climatic conditions of the area allows the grapes not to freeze in the most severe frosts and with the beginning of spring to enter a new fruit-bearing season.
When to cover
Beginners often misunderstand the recommendations to cover grapes for the winter after the first frosts, when the temperature exceeds minus five. This contributes to a kind of hardening of the plant, as it triggers biochemical processes in it, contributing to a better entry into winter. But this information is true for mature, already fruiting vines, while young grapes need to be protected and covered against the onset of frost.
In the Moscow suburbs in the middle belt
The deadline for covering young grapes is on the eve of the first frosts, when the night temperature has already decreased significantly. You should not concentrate on the division of leaves, as the time of natural shedding may not collapse with a drop in temperature: frost often captures the plant that has not yet shed its leaves.
In the Urals
In the Urals, the first frosts, which occur in this region around October – early November, should begin with the construction of insulation for young grapes. It goes without saying that we are mainly talking about the Southern Urals, not the circumpolar region.
In Siberia
Gradual placement of young Siberian grapes begins in September, when the last leaves fall off and the average daily temperature does not exceed +5 ° C, and ends after the frost begins and the temperature does not fall below e-5 ° C. If the leaves are not in a hurry to fall, manual defoliation (i.e., plucking the remaining leaves from the grapes) is carried out.
In the Leningrad region
The humid climate of the Leningrad region determines the peculiarities of covering for the winter: they cover not so much from frost as from thawing. At this moment, the ice forms a peel on the grapes. Therefore, dry light shelter constructions are constructed, although St. Petersburg grapes can already boast of stable varieties. It is necessary to cover at a stable cold snap.
preparation for protection
Preparation of young grapes for covering includes such steps as:
- Irrigation;
- pruning;
- Feeding;
- Antiparasitic treatment and prevention of plant diseases.
The technique of performing these stages of preparation and the amount of work depends on the age of the grapes and climatic characteristics of the region.
Pruning – is it necessary?
In general, autumn pruning for grapes is very desirable, this procedure:
- Promotes the health of the plant (sanitary or sanitary pruning).
- Makes bushes more compact, which facilitates the process of covering and improves the quality of wintering (pruning).
- Avoids loss of sap, unlike feathering pruning.
Young vines are at risk in the winter, as soon as they run out of leaves, they are cut off. However, this does not apply to the first bunches, it is not recommended to cut them.
Fertilizing
Irrigation, the timing of which depends on the fall weather. If the culture is already mounted, and with a warm and dry autumn keeps a fairly high air temperature, then immediately after the collection of bunches should be watered. If the temperature corresponds to the calendar, however, the plant needs a good watering in mid-October. So that the nutrient moisture does not spread but nourishes the root system, the base of the stem is shallowly dug and water is poured there.
Fertilization of young plants is carried out in September, as the same microelements are used as for adult grapes, but the concentration of the nutrient solution is reduced by half. A very well-proven fertilizer consisting of potassium magnesia (about 35 g) and superphosphate (about 50 g), these substances are dissolved in a bucket of water. In October, feeding is repeated.
Treatment against illnesses and pests
Autumn treatment is aimed at destroying wintering forms of insect pests and pathogens. In this way, young grapes can be safe and healthy for spring ripening.
A popular and simple remedy is a solution of salt and soda (baking soda). For a ten-liter bucket of water, take 5 tablespoons of soda and twice as much salt. The water should not be cold. With this soda-salt solution, treat the grapes completely, including the leaves. In September, it is necessary to treat the grapes three times.
It is used for disinfecting and slimming agents, as well as a solution of sulfate (iron or copper). A bucket of water is heated to hot (at least 40 ° C) and prepare a solution in it, for which take 100 g of copper vitriol, and iron vitriol is sprayed grapes after laying on the ground and cover the vitriol only after that, until the grapes are sprayed with the solution dry.
Nitrate and DNC are effective in controlling pathogens and fungi, but they are very toxic and take a long time to decompose, so they can be used every three years.
Wintering vineyards are often damaged by hungry rodents. Carbide (a product used for welding) is used for fall. Calcium carbide is created in clean metal cups (under vaseline, shoe polish, etc.) and placed under cover. When carbide absorbs atmospheric moisture, a chemical reaction occurs with the release of gas, and the rodent odor and disease-causing microorganisms are destroyed.
How to cover young grapes step by step
There are three ways to cover grapes:
- dip;
- incomplete protection;
- Full protection.
Before protection, preparatory work for winter (watering, feeding, pruning, possibly treatment against pests and diseases) is carried out with grapes, so we will not mention these stages.
Feeding is carried out mainly in the first year. This is enough to cover the work reliably. The same method is used in beds. For such grapes, a layer of earth, which protects the stepchildren and the lower part of the shoots, is enough. The height of the earth embankment should be 10-25 cm, according to some sources up to 30 cm. A dam of earth should be quite dense. This method is simple and reliable, but if the winter is harsh, it is better to insulate the grapes.
Incomplete cover is formed according to the following scheme:
- The head of the bush and the base of the shoots are covered with a floor.
- The other parts, rising above the floor, are covered with straw and wrapped over it with cloth. As a covering material is also used:
- Trimmed plastic bottles;
- bucket;
- Tight paper from which to build a cone-shaped cover;
- Hay;
- Sunflower bowl.
The protective damper should be 3-4 cm thick.
For severe winter frosts for severe winter frosts for these varieties of grapes is recommended:
- removed from the trellis;
- formed;
- collected in one bunch and tied together;
- bent to the ground;
- Covered with a dense natural cloth;
- A film is placed on top.
It is very important to maintain the distance between the film and the vine, so that it does not interfere with the plant in winter, and when the spring heat burns the buds, the rays did not burn when the film enhances the rays, as objectively.
If necessary, the insulating structure is pressed to the ground with clips of earth. The presence of such a layer and its thickness depends on winter temperatures. You can also use a loft and slate.
How to cover a young grape bush for the winter: video
Frequent mistakes of gardeners
The main mistakes beginner grape growers make are:
- Protecting grapes too early or too late;
- Using inappropriate materials;
- Insufficient or excessive insulation.
Early protection and excessive insulation can cause the plant to hatch and buds to form. Late placement and insufficient (or uneven) insulation will cause the vine to freeze.
Materials for protection that are in direct contact with the grapevine should be used natural and properly combined with the top covering. Therefore, the film may retain condensation, which must be regularly ventilated. Agrotechnical clinic is also not ideal, as it can cause rotting of water and troops, and in subsequent frosts – frostbite.
Proper insulation depends on the region, the grape variety, and the availability of improvised materials. If young grapes are well prepared for winter and covered properly, they develop well and bear fruit.
