Is Grape Growing Profitable? Prospects Analysis and Growing Techniques
Grapes are a major fruit among fruits, one of the most common and most frequently eaten types, so grapes hold a very important position in our country and even in the world. So is growing grapes profitable? What are the prospects for grape growing? How do you grow them? What are the grape growing methods and techniques?
There are now a very large number of grape varieties, and grapes occupy a very large share of our country's fruit market; the market is very broad. But in recent years, our country's grape market has gone through a major upheaval, most of it caused by grape quality failing to meet standards, with a small part driven by external forces, so for a time the market was very unpromising. So what are the prospects for growing grapes in 2018?
I. Prospects for grape growing
Grapes are a major fruit among fruits, one of the most common and most frequently eaten types, so grapes hold a very important position in our country and even in the world. Grapes are rather fragile and require great care in their source and packaging; although the annual yield is fairly high, each time they are transported to the point of sale the quality is not very good. There are now more and more types of grapes in our country, but quality has never been guaranteed, so high-quality products are needed. Next, many other industries are derived from grapes, such as wine production and sales, canned goods, raisins and so on; these industries also have relatively large demand, so the growing prospects are still quite good.
II. Is growing grapes profitable
1. Market demand
Our country's grape market is very large, but the biggest demand in our current market is consumption as fruit and raisins, while grape exports are generally mainly wine, raisins and canned goods, because fresh grapes are very unsuitable for transport. Our country's total annual demand for grapes can reach more than six million tons; next, the annual export volume is also very large. For example, our country's Xinjiang raisins are famously well known, and the annual export volume also reaches several million tons, so demand is extremely huge.
2. Market price
The market price of grapes differs at different times, in different regions, and for different varieties. In the peak production season for grapes, grapes are basically five or six yuan per jin; in the off-season for grapes, it is more than ten to twenty yuan per jin. In Hunan, the price of different grapes is generally between four and twenty yuan, while in Xinjiang, grapes can be said to be worth very little, and in Japan grapes can be said to fetch sky-high prices, roughly fifty or sixty yuan per jin in RMB. Different varieties also have different prices: ordinary grapes are around six yuan, Beauty Finger is twelve to twenty yuan per jin, and Nina Queen is also around twenty; market prices vary and are very chaotic.
3. Growing costs
The cost of growing grapes is somewhat high, but compared with other tropical fruits it is still relatively low. Taking the planting of one mu of vineyard as an example, purchasing grape seedlings costs at least about 1,500 to 2,000 yuan; the required fertilizer and pesticides cost at least about 700 yuan; the most important thing for grapes is building trellises, and the cost of purchasing trellises is about 1,000 to 1,500 yuan; finally there are some other auxiliary growing costs of about 600 yuan, so the total cost required for one year is around four to five thousand yuan.
4. Profit returns
The profit returns from grapes come in stages. The first year's yield is very low; one mu of land can produce only about 500 to 1,000 jin. At market prices our total profit is 3,000 to 6,000 yuan, so in the first year not much money can be made. Generally only by the second year can there be a high yield and thus profit returns. At this time the yield per mu is at least 3,000 jin, which can yield a profit of about fourteen to fifteen thousand; after deducting two years of costs, the profit return per mu is around seven to eight thousand, and the profit margin is still very large.
III. Grape growing techniques and methods
1. Cutting propagation methods
(1) Open-field cutting propagation of seedlings
In spring, after taking the stored branches out of the trench, first soak them indoors in clean water for 6-8 hours, then cut them. Generally the branches are cut into cuttings with 2-3 buds each. The cuttings are generally about 20 cm long; for varieties with long internodes, only 1-2 buds are left on each cutting. When cutting the cuttings, the upper end is cut flat 1 cm above the bud, and the lower end is cut obliquely below the bud, with the cut surface shaped like a “horse ear” (roots form easily when the cut is close to the bud eye). The bud eye at the upper part of the cutting must be plump and full; after cutting, if the first bud eye is damaged, the second bud eye can sprout, which helps raise the survival rate of the cuttings.
The nursery site should be chosen in a place with flat terrain, deep soil, loose and fertile soil, and irrigation conditions. After cutting, irrigate in the furrows; if conditions allow, covering with plastic film before cutting gives better results. No matter which cutting method is used, when cutting it must be noted that the upper end of the cutting cannot be exposed above the ground for too long, and at the same time random cutting must be prevented and variety mixing must be avoided.
The cutting time begins when the local soil temperature (at 15-20 cm depth) stabilizes above 10°C. In North China this is generally from late March to early April, but in northern North China open-field cutting propagation of seedlings can only be carried out in mid-April.
From after grape cutting until new roots are produced, soil drought must be prevented at this stage; generally water once about every 10 days. For heavy clay soil, watering should be less frequent; if watered too much, the soil becomes too wet, ground temperature drops, and poor soil aeration also affects rooting of the cuttings. After the cuttings have rooted, fertilizer and water management should be strengthened. In early to mid-July the seedlings enter a stage of rapid growth, and at this time quick-acting fertilizer should be applied 2-3 times. In order to make the branches fully mature, from late July to August watering and fertilizing should be stopped or reduced, while pest and disease control should be strengthened, and the main shoots and secondary shoots should be pinched to ensure the seedlings grow robustly and to promote thickening growth. During seedling growth, timely hoeing and weeding should be carried out to improve soil aeration and promote root growth.
Open-field cutting is the simplest seedling-raising method, with low cost and easy promotion, but if managed improperly, the cutting survival rate is low and the seedling emergence rate is low. In addition, with open-field cutting, the seedling growth period is relatively short and seedling quality is relatively poor. Generally, open-field cutting uses 6,000-7,000 cuttings per 666.7 sq m, with a seedling formation rate of 60%-70%.
(2) Root-promoting cuttings
In northern China in spring, from March to April, air temperature rises relatively quickly while ground temperature rises relatively slowly. With open-field cutting, the cuttings often sprout first and root later, with a gap of more than 20 days between sprouting and rooting. If managed improperly, the sprouted tender buds often wither because water and nutrients cannot be supplied in time, seriously affecting the cutting survival rate. The reason is that grape bud eyes require a relatively low temperature to sprout, generally around 10°C is enough to sprout. But rooting requires a high temperature; rooting is fastest at 25-28°C. Root promotion means, according to the temperature requirements for grape rooting, artificially raising the temperature to prompt accelerated division of root primordial cells at the base of the cutting and promote the formation of adventitious roots. Root-promoting methods commonly used in production include hotbed root promotion, fire-pit root promotion, electric-heating root promotion, and chemical treatment root promotion.
(3) Hotbed root promotion
In the hotbed, fermentation materials are used to create warming conditions and promote rooting. Before root promotion, first dig a bed pit in the ground, with the bottom slightly higher in the middle and slightly lower around the edges, then fill in 20-30 cm thick fresh horse manure, tamping it down while filling, level it by treading, and after leveling water it to moisten the horse manure, then cover with plastic film to prompt the horse manure to ferment and generate heat. After several days, when the temperature rises to 30-40°C, spread fine soil about 5 cm thick on top of the horse manure. When the temperature drops and stabilizes at about 30°C, arrange the prepared cuttings neatly and upright on top. Fill wet sand or wet sawdust between the branches to prevent hot air from rising and water from evaporating. Keep the soil temperature at the lower part of the cuttings at 22-30°C. Note that the buds at the top end of the cuttings must never be buried in the sand, to avoid premature sprouting due to high temperature. During root promotion, keep the sand or sawdust moist, and pay attention to controlling the bed surface air temperature; during the day uncover the plastic film covering the hotbed and use the cold early-spring air to lower the bed surface temperature and prevent the bud eyes from sprouting too early.
(4) Fire-heated kang root promotion
Generally a back-dragon fire kang is used, and either semi-underground or above-ground types are acceptable. The kang is 1.5-2 m wide, and the length depends on need. For the specific construction method, first dig 2-3 small trenches under the kang bed. The small trenches are 20 cm deep and 15 cm wide. Cover the top of the small trenches flat with bricks or adobe; this is the first layer of flues, namely the main flue. There should be a certain angle from the flue outlet to the inlet, sloping upward, and then above the first layer of flues build a perforated structure with bricks or adobe, which is the second layer of flues. Coat with mud to form the kang surface, and build a low wall around it with bricks. After the fire kang is built, it must first be test-fired, and places with excessively high temperature should be appropriately filled with soil. When the temperature at all parts of the kang surface is uniform (20-28°C), spread 10 cm thick wet sand or wet sawdust, place the cuttings on top for root promotion, and cover with plastic film to prevent the cuttings from losing water and drying out.
(5) Chemical treatment
Treatment with chemicals can effectively promote rooting. The main effect of the chemicals is to strengthen the respiration of the cuttings, increase enzyme activity, and promote the division of meristematic cells. There are many kinds of chemicals that promote rooting, among which soaking the base of the cuttings in 50 mg/kg D5I butyric acid (1BA) or 50-100 mg/kg naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) for 12-14 hours gives the best effect. In order to use less container space, quickly dipping the roots in 300-500 mg/kg naphthaleneacetic acid for 5-10 seconds and then immediately promoting roots or cutting also gives a good root-promoting effect.
(6) Points to note
No matter which root-promoting method is used, to ensure a good root-promoting effect, the following points must be noted: ① Different root-promoting methods promote rooting at different times, but generally the most suitable degree of root promotion for cutting is when the root primordium breaks through the cortex by about 0.5 cm, at which point cutting can be carried out; if root promotion goes on too long, the new roots are easily broken during cutting, affecting the cutting survival rate. ② The root-promoting time should be handled flexibly. If after root promotion the cuttings are to be directly planted in the open field, root promotion should be slightly later, so that after treatment they can be planted in the open field; if raising seedlings in protected conditions, root promotion can be appropriately earlier. ② When heating for root promotion, there should be a process of gradual cooling in the later stage of root promotion, so that the new roots adapt to the external environmental conditions before cutting propagation of seedlings. ④ For cuttings that have undergone root-promoting treatment, the root primordium must never be damaged during cutting. After cutting into the seedling bed, irrigate with enough water so that the new roots closely combine with the bed soil.
2. Rapid grape propagation methods
(1) Rapid seedling raising with plastic nutrient bags
Before raising seedlings, first use plastic film 19 cm wide and 16 cm long, sealed opposite each other, to make a plastic bag 16 cm high and about 6 cm in diameter; plastic bags of corresponding specifications sold on the market can also be used. Cut a small hole 1 cm in diameter at the bottom of the bag or cut the two bottom corners of the bag to facilitate drainage. At the same time, use soil, sieved fine sand, and rotted barnyard manure to prepare nutrient soil in the ratio sand:soil:manure = 2:1:1. The proportion of sand cannot be too small, to prevent the soil in the bag from being too heavy and affecting rooting.
The advantages of raising seedlings in plastic nutrient bags are: ① Saving cuttings. ② High survival rate at planting. Seedlings raised in plastic bags have well-developed root systems; when planting, after removing the plastic bag the soil does not crumble and the roots are not damaged, there is no seedling revival period after planting, the seedlings keep growing, and the survival rate can generally reach more than 95%. ③ Saving land and labor. With open-field cutting propagation of seedlings, generally about 5,000 seedlings emerge per 666.7 sq m, while with protected plastic bag seedling raising, more than 100,000 seedlings can emerge per 666.7 sq m. At the same time, post-cutting management is also relatively simple; only watering is needed, no hoeing and loosening of soil is required, and lifting seedlings, temporary planting, and transport are also very convenient. ④ Earlier fruiting. Plastic bag seedlings can be planted in May; because there is no seedling revival process after planting and the growth period is relatively prolonged, the plant can take shape in the same year and begin to bear fruit in the second year.
The key to raising seedlings in plastic nutrient bags is to pay attention to controlling moisture. Too much moisture will cause the cuttings to rot and deteriorate, so they must be checked frequently. When raising seedlings in plastic bags in a greenhouse, keep the greenhouse temperature at 25-30°C during the day, not exceeding 30°C at the highest, and the nighttime temperature must not be lower than 15°C.
(2) Fire-heated kang seedling raising
Fire-heated kang seedling raising is actually, on the basis of fire-heated kang root promotion, directly cultivating the cuttings into seedlings on the fire kang, and then planting them in the field. The construction of the fire kang and the preparation of the cuttings are the same as for fire-heated kang root promotion; only the cutting density is not as great as for root promotion, generally cutting one cutting every 4-5 cm, with 2 of the cutting buried in wet sand. After all the cuttings on the kang are planted, start heating by fire at any time, heating 2-3 times every evening and morning, so that the temperature in the sand on the bed surface remains at 25-30°C. At the same time, pay attention to sprinkling water frequently to keep the bed moist, and when the air temperature is relatively high, uncover the plastic film in time for ventilation. Under normal circumstances, the heating time takes about 1 month or 1.5 months. Stop heating 7-10 days before field planting, and carry out adaptive training for the seedlings. Generally 12 days after cutting, callus tissue begins to form; after 20 days the rooting rate reaches 70%; after 1 month one cutting can grow more than 10 roots, some of which have become semi-lignified. At this time the above-ground part can also produce 3-4 leaves, and seedling height can reach 13-20 cm. In practical application, to facilitate management and taking seedlings for planting, a seedling-raising method combining nutrient pots or nutrient bags with fire-heated kang warming is often used.
Fire-heated kang seedling raising saves time, land, and labor, with low investment, quick results, and a high seedling formation rate; this method can be used in rural areas without electricity supply.
Fire-heated kang seedling raising is the same as electric-heating seedling raising; it achieves spring seedling raising and early-summer planting, prolongs the seedling growth time, and creates conditions for early shaping, early fruiting, and early high yield.
When raising seedlings with a fire-heated kang, the fire kang can be built in a residential courtyard or at the edge of a field by the village, saving dedicated land for seedling raising.
For places without irrigation conditions, open-field seedling raising often fails due to insufficient water supply, while fire-heated kang seedling raising can concentrate the seedlings, save water, and is also more convenient to manage. Therefore, in arid areas this method of concentrated seedling raising should be promoted.
(3) Electric-heating seedling raising or electric-heating root promotion with greenhouse seedling raising
This seedling-raising method is actually, on the basis of electric-heating root promotion, cultivating the cuttings all the way into seedlings on an electric heating bed, or after electric-heating root promotion cutting them into a greenhouse for seedling raising. Therefore, the seedling formation rate is higher, and the seedling growth time is also longer; generally it can extend the growth period by about 2 months compared with ordinary open-field cutting, easily achieving the goal of strong seedlings in the same year and fruiting in the second year.
(4) Plastic film mulching seedling raising
Before grape cutting, first cover the seedling bed or seedling-raising field ridge with plastic film, press the edges of the film firmly with soil. When cutting, first use a thicker pointed wooden stick to poke a hole in the seedling bed, then place the cutting into the hole so that the topmost bud is about 0.5 cm above the ground, seal the lower cutting hole of the cutting well with soil, and then irrigate once thoroughly.
The main role of plastic film is to increase ground temperature, maintain soil moisture, and promote good growth of grape seedlings. Covering with plastic film reduces soil moisture evaporation, prevents soil compaction and weed overgrowth, and also lightens complicated nursery management work. But note that when the temperature is high, film mulching can cause seedling scorching; at this time straw should be covered on the film or the film should be removed in time to prevent seedling scorching.
Grapes have a strong light preference. Under conditions of sufficient light, the leaves are thick and dark green, photosynthesis is strong, the plant grows robustly, many flower buds form, the berries have high sugar content and are sweet, and the yield is high.
Humidity should not easily be too high. If there is much rain before flowering, new shoots grow too vigorously and consume stored nutrients in the plant; if it is rainy during the flowering period, fertilization is poor and causes flower drop; if it is rainy from the fruit enlargement stage to the ripening stage, light is insufficient, sugar content is low, coloring is poor, quality is inferior, and fruit cracking easily occurs. High temperature, rain, and humidity are also the main reasons for increased grape diseases.
3. Grape training and pruning
The purpose of training and pruning is to regulate the contradiction between growth and fruiting, reasonably arrange branches and vines on the trellis, make management convenient, keep the tree vigor robust, prolong life, and create conditions for high yield year after year. Grape training and pruning differ by variety. “Kyoho” has extremely strong tree vigor, so pruning should be light with long retention; pinching the fruiting branches before flowering and removing part of the cluster tip helps ease tree vigor, reduce flower and fruit drop, and increase the fruit-setting rate. For “Queen of the Vineyard” with medium-strong tree vigor, medium-short shoot pruning is suitable.
One is multi-main-vine training, suitable for areas where soil is mounded over the vines for winter cold protection. In the planting year, when the sprouts grow to 5—6 leaves, top them and select and retain 3—4 thick main vines. The second is trunk-form training; in the planting year, after sprouting, keep only one new shoot and cultivate an upright-growing trunk.
Grape winter pruning is generally carried out from about one month after leaf fall in autumn to about 20 days before sprouting the following year. Pruning too early or too late causes serious damage to the tree body, loses nutrients, and causes weak plant growth. According to the strength of tree vigor and the length of fruiting mother branches, the principle of grape winter pruning is: strong vines retain long, weak vines retain short; upper parts retain long, lower parts retain short. It can be roughly divided into three methods: (1) Long-vine pruning. Long-vine pruning generally mostly uses the double-vine renewal method. Select and retain one vine below the fruiting mother vine as the renewal mother branch; the renewal mother branch retains 2—3 healthy buds, and the fruiting mother vine retains 6—12 buds, prompting new shoots to emerge, which can flower and fruit that year. Of the 2 new shoots emerging from the renewal mother vine (if 3 emerge, one should be removed), if there are inflorescences on them they should be removed to reduce nutrient consumption and prompt the branch tissue to become full. By winter pruning the next year, cut off all the fruiting mother vines of that year; the new shoots on the upper part of the renewal mother vine still retain 6—12 buds as fruiting mother vines, and the new shoots on the lower part retain another 2—3 buds as renewal mother vines. When selecting and retaining renewal mother vines, note that ones as close to the trunk as possible should be chosen, to control the speed at which the fruiting position rises year by year. (2) Short-vine pruning. First cultivate a vine of about one meter, and let multiple fruiting main vines emerge from the main vine. During winter pruning, retain 2—3 buds on each fruiting mother vine. After shoots emerge in spring, select one upper branch as the fruiting branch and one lower branch as the renewal branch, and do not let it bear fruit. At winter pruning, cut off all the fruiting branches and retain 2—3 buds on the renewal branch. (3) Medium-vine pruning. Medium-vine pruning and renewal methods are basically the same as short-vine pruning; the difference is that the fruiting mother branch retains more buds, generally 4—5 buds. In addition, when pruning, crowded branches, slender weak branches, pest- and disease-damaged branches, and dried branches should be cut off.
4. Management of the plant during the growth period
(1) Bud removal. In order to use nutrients most economically and effectively and make new shoots evenly spaced, remove excessive unnecessary tender shoots as early as possible.
(2) Tying shoots and removing tendrils. When new shoots grow to 25-30 cm, they should be tied in time; using the figure-eight tying method can prevent the new shoots from being rubbed and injured. While tying the shoots, remove the tendrils to reduce nutrient consumption.
(3) Pinching of new shoots and handling of secondary shoots. Pinching new shoots can inhibit excessive vine growth. The large number of secondary shoots produced after pinching should be suppressed. Secondary shoots below the fruit cluster can be removed from the base; secondary shoots above the fruit cluster are pinched with 2 leaves retained; secondary shoots at the top of the main shoot retain a few leaves. Pinching fruiting branches can limit vegetative growth, promote nutrient accumulation in the inflorescence, and increase the fruit-setting rate. Generally, about one week before flowering, it is suitable to pinch by retaining 5-9 leaves above the uppermost fruit cluster.
(4) Trimming of inflorescences and fruit clusters. There are often 1-3 inflorescences on one fruiting branch, and it is suitable to retain one well-developed inflorescence. Then appropriately trim the inflorescence. For varieties with low fruit-setting rate and loose fruit clusters, such as Muscat Hamburg and Kyoho, the secondary cluster should be cut off and part of the cluster tip removed 2-3 days before flowering to increase the fruit-setting rate; for varieties with high fruit-setting rate such as White Malaga and Italia, the berries are often too crowded, causing fruit cracking and uneven berry ripening. For these varieties, berry thinning should be carried out 10-20 days after flowering with small pointed scissors, to enlarge the berries and improve quality. In Japan, cluster thinning and berry thinning are carried out on Kyoho grapes; generally about 35 berries are retained per fruit cluster, and berry weight can reach 15-18 grams.
5. Fertilizer and water management
Grapes are perennial plants; they grow and bear fruit every year and need to absorb large amounts of nutrients from the soil. In order to keep tree vigor robust and continuously increase product yield and quality, attention must be paid to rational fertilization. According to measurements from some high-yield grape orchards in our country, for every additional 100 jin of berries produced, about 0.25—0.75 kg of nitrogen, 0.2—0.75 kg of phosphorus, and 0.13—0.63 kg of potassium need to be applied. Each place can adapt to local conditions and determine a suitable fertilizer amount through production practice and scientific experiments.
By fertilization period it can be divided into base fertilizer and topdressing. Base fertilizer should be applied from after fruit harvest until the new shoots fully mature, in late September to early October. Base fertilizer uses slow-release fertilizers such as rotted human manure or barnyard manure, poultry manure, green manure mixed with phosphate fertilizer (superphosphate). Topdressing generally applies quick-acting nitrogen fertilizer such as rotted human manure or cake fertilizer more than ten days before flowering, and in early July applies mainly potassium fertilizer such as plant ash and chicken manure. The fertilization method can be digging a ring-shaped trench about 1 m from the plant and applying it in; the base fertilizer depth is about 40 cm, and topdressing should be shallower to avoid damaging too many roots. Watering is needed after fertilization.
Foliar topdressing of grapes has a significant effect on increasing yield and quality, and the method is simple. Spraying 1-3% superphosphate solution before flowering, at the young fruit stage, and at the berry ripening stage has the effect of increasing yield and improving quality; spraying 0.05—0.1% boric acid solution before flowering can increase the fruit-setting rate; spraying 0.02% potassium salt solution or 3% plant ash extract (soaked one day before spraying) at the fruit-setting stage and fruit growth stage can increase berry sugar content and yield. For foliar fertilizer spraying, if there is drought, the concentration should be appropriately lowered to avoid leaf scorching; in areas where it has not been used, it is suitable to first try a small amount, and after gaining experience, gradually promote it.
Grapes are relatively drought-tolerant, but if irrigated at the right time, yield can increase significantly. From sap flow to before flowering, attention should be paid to keeping the soil moist; if irrigation can be combined with topdressing at this time, good fertilizer and water conditions can be created for flowering and fruit setting. But too much water during the flowering period will cause a large amount of flower and fruit drop; unless the soil is too dry, it is not suitable to water during the flowering period. From after fruit setting to before fruit coloring, it is exactly the high-temperature period, leaf transpiration is large, and a large amount of water is needed; watering can be done every 7-10 days according to the weather. After the berries color and begin to soften, except in particularly dry years, too much water lowers the fruit sugar content, makes it less storable, and easily causes fruit cracking. During the dormant period, soil that is too dry is unfavorable for overwintering, and soil that is too wet easily causes bud eyes to rot. Generally after harvest, irrigate once thoroughly in combination with autumn fertilization; in northern production areas, before cold protection, irrigate once with winter-sealing water; this is an important measure for grape cold protection.
There are many methods for propagating grape seedlings. According to the different propagation materials used, they can be divided into two major categories: sexual propagation and asexual propagation. Sexual propagation is using seeds to propagate seedlings, the so-called seedling propagation; the seedlings propagated are called seedling-grown seedlings. Sexual propagation is mainly used in production for propagating rootstock seedlings. Because the seeds used in sexual propagation are produced through a sexual process, they segregate greatly from a genetic standpoint and cannot maintain the stability of the original variety's traits. In addition, in conventional breeding, hybrid seeds obtained through hybridization are sown to grow hybrid seedlings, from which excellent individual plants are selected until an excellent variety is bred. Asexual propagation is a method of using a certain vegetative organ of the plant (such as branches, roots, and buds) as propagation material to breed seedlings; the resulting seedlings are called vegetative seedlings. Asexual propagation methods include hardwood cuttings, green cuttings, hardwood grafting, and green grafting. On the basis of the above methods, combining various facility conditions (such as greenhouses, large sheds, small arched sheds, electric heating lines, nutrient pots, etc.) can greatly improve.