Grape Growing Methods and Techniques: How to Solve the Problem of Grapes Not Being Sweet
Grapes are a famous fruit, known along with bananas, citrus, apples, pears, and peaches as one of the six major fruits of our country. Their sweet-and-sour taste is delicious and they are very popular with consumers, with market demand always remaining strong. Therefore, growing grapes is a promising venture. So, how do you grow grapes? Here we introduce grape growing methods and techniques.
I. Introduction to Grape Growing Methods and Techniques!
1. Propagation
Grape propagation methods include cutting propagation, layering propagation, and grafting propagation. Cuttings should be taken when the local soil temperature (at a depth of 15-20 cm) stabilizes above 10°C; layering propagation is generally carried out in late spring before buds break, using surplus 1-2 year old branches; grafting propagation is generally carried out in mid-May, with the grafting period lasting as long as 1 month, and in some places even longer.
2. Orchard Establishment
The site should be chosen on high ground facing the sun, with fertile, deep sandy loam or loose soil and good irrigation and drainage. Therefore, it can be planted on riverbank land or hilly sandy land, but for high yields, the soil depth must be more than 60 cm and organic matter content above 2%. Next, set up a trellis system; the trellis can be made of concrete posts, stone posts, wooden posts, etc. A single hedge trellis is generally used, with the trellis surface perpendicular to the ground, which helps with ventilation and light penetration.
3. Management
(1) Temperature: The minimum air temperature required for grape growth is about 12°C-15°C, the minimum soil temperature is about 10°C-13°C, the optimum temperature during flowering is around 20°C, and the optimum temperature during the fruit swelling stage is 20°C-30°C. During the fruiting period, if the day-night temperature difference is large, coloring and sugar content will be better.
(2) Light: Grapes must receive light of a certain intensity during normal growth, but it should not be too intense; otherwise, bagging should be used, or grape leaves should be used to shade the fruit.
(3) Water: Grapes have relatively high water requirements. During the early growth stage or vegetative growth period, they need more water; during the late growth stage or fruiting period, the root system weakens and needs less water. Pay attention to drainage on rainy days, because grapes “are drought-tolerant but not waterlogging-tolerant.”
(4) Fertilization: The principle of grape fertilization is to grasp the principles of “less first, more later” and “small meals, more frequently.” Before the end of June, mainly apply nitrogen fertilizer, 2 times; in July—August, mainly apply compound fertilizer, 2 times; in September—October, mainly apply organic fertilizer, 3-5 times.
(5) Pruning: To improve fruit set rate and berry quality, thin flowers, thin fruit, thin branches, and pinch off growing tips. At the same time, promptly remove tendrils to prevent nutrient consumption and rampant climbing, and also promptly tie new shoots to the wire, striving for even distribution.
(6) Pest and Disease Control: The main grape diseases include black pox, white rot, and downy mildew; insect pests include clearwing moths, star caterpillars, tiger longhorn beetles, leafhoppers, red spiders, etc. Attention should be paid to their control.
II. What to Do If Grapes Are Not Sweet?
In the market, sweet grapes are always popular, while sour grapes generally do not sell well. Therefore, if you want your grapes to sell, you must grow sweet grapes. If the grapes are not sweet, there are ways to solve this.
You can spray potassium fertilizer, trace element fertilizer, or grape coloring and sugar-enhancing agent to increase the sweetness of grapes. Spraying potassium fertilizer is done during the period from accelerated growth to maturity; spraying rare earth trace element fertilizer is done when the fruit begins to soften; spraying grape coloring and sugar-enhancing agent is done when the fruit is fully softened. Spraying should be done on cloudy days or on sunny afternoons, focusing on young leaves and the undersides of leaves, spraying evenly until the surface is completely wet. If rain occurs within 24 hours after spraying, spray again, otherwise it will not be effective.
The above is an introduction to grape growing methods and techniques. During management, pay attention to temperature, light, water, fertilization, pruning, and pest and disease control. For the problem of grapes not being sweet, you can spray potassium fertilizer, trace element fertilizer, or grape coloring and sugar-enhancing agent to increase sweetness.