How to prune grapevines

Grapes are a common fruit and are grown in many areas. To achieve good quality and high yield of grape vines, proper pruning is essential. Learn how to prune grape vines.

1. Spring bud removal

In spring, when the branches of grapes grow to about 5 cm, you can first adopt the method of removing buds. Generally, there are two or three buds on the branches, and you only need to keep one strong bud. Bud removal is to keep the strong buds and remove the weak ones. Those with inflorescences can be kept, and those without inflorescences can be removed. If there are both inflorescences, both can be kept. It is also the most common pruning method for spring management.

2. Topping treatment

After the grapes start to bear fruit, when the branches have 8-10 true leaves, they need to be topped. If the branches become too long, more side branches will sprout, which can easily lead to insufficient nutrition for the fruit and cause excessive growth. After the grapes bear fruit, the top shoots need to be pruned and the branches and leaves of the side shoots need to be removed. Only in this way can sufficient nutrients be converted from supplying vegetative growth to reproductive growth, prompting the grapes to bloom evenly and produce enough grapes.

3. Branch shaping

Branch shaping is the most important application in vineyards and is a relatively technical step. It is related to the number and uniformity of branches on the grape vine, affecting the plant shape and yield, but it is less considered in family cultivation. The standard for pruning is to leave a branch every 10 cm, and the other branches can be removed. Leaving 10 branches on the main vine of the grape vine in the first year can ensure subsequent yields.

4. Remove the inflorescence

For grape vines, the inflorescence formed is basically unable to fully form fruits, and a large number of fruits will fall after the fruits swell in the later stage. Therefore, it is necessary to remove excessive or weak inflorescences, and it is recommended to reduce the number of inflorescences on weaker branches. Basically, the inflorescence at the base will be wiped off directly, leaving a small part of the inflorescence at the top, which can increase the fruit setting rate and the quality will also be improved accordingly.

5. Remove side branches

In autumn, some useless side shoots and excessive side branches should be removed from the grape vines, and only 4-5 strong fruiting branches should be retained.

6. Remove diseased leaves

Grapes are a type of berry that is particularly prone to disease. During the growth process, diseased leaves need to be removed in a timely manner to prevent infection. Aged leaves also need to be removed in a timely manner to avoid nutrient waste. At the same time, ventilation and light transmission are ensured to enhance photosynthesis.

7. Winter pruning

In winter, grape vines are pruned extensively, and the overgrown branches and excessive branches should be pruned away, leaving the main fruiting branches with 3-4 buds on each branch. Only through reasonable pruning can the grapes grow well, bear more fruits and good quality.

That’s it