Technology for growing grapes in a polycarbonate greenhouse, pruning and care
Growing grapes in a greenhouse increases the ability to harvest a large and high-quality crop. The culture loves a lot of warmth and sunshine, but the climate of the region does not always meet these requirements. Indoors, it is easier to recreate the optimal conditions for the development of grapes. It is important to choose the right variety, follow agrotechnical techniques and some other requirements.
Benefits of growing grapes in a greenhouse
Growing grapes in a greenhouse, compared to open-air beds, has a number of positive aspects.
This planting method is especially suitable for areas with an unstable climate:
- Indoors, it is easier to maintain the set temperature and humidity level. Even without an artificial heater, the room will be 3-4 degrees warmer than outside.
- Subject to all the rules of cultivation and care, the crop can be harvested 3-4 weeks earlier.
- Convenient to care in any season, easier to harvest.
- Infectious diseases develop less often, so there is no need to treat bushes with chemicals.
- There is no risk of wasps and other insects damaging the mature crop.
- The greenhouse design protects the plant from spring frosts, low temperatures in winter, hail and heavy rains.
- The number of bunches increases significantly.
In the interval between seedlings in the greenhouse, you can plant flowers, vegetables, greens.
Variety selection
An important step is choosing the right variety for planting in a greenhouse. It is important that the selected grape variety has bisexual flowers. Experienced gardeners recommend opting for grape varieties with early ripening boundaries.
For cultivation in a greenhouse, it is recommended to choose varieties with thin brushes. Dense, thick branches will poorly transmit light and increase the risk of developing fungal diseases:
- Table grapes Michurinsky is a variety with early ripening boundaries. Differs in strong growth and abundant harvest. The bunches are formed in a conical shape, weighing up to 400 g. The oval-shaped dark-burgundy berries weigh 4 g. Resistance to diseases is average.
- Table view grape lora characterized by very early ripening of the crop. The bunches are large, conical in shape. The weight of one bunch reaches 1 kg. The berries are oblong, light green in color, weigh 7-9 g. It rarely gets sick, tolerates cold well, the berries are not prone to cracking.
- The Korinka Russkaya variety is distinguished by strong growth, high productivity, early crop maturity, frost and disease resistance. The bunches are not very large.The berries are small, weigh 2-3 g. The skin is thin, but strong, yellow-green in color. There are no seeds inside.
- Arcadia grape is a table variety with early ripening. The bunches are large, cylindrical in shape, weighing up to 700 g. The berries are also large, weighing up to 15 g, the skin color is green-white.
Other popular varieties for indoor use include: Moskovsky Ustoichy, Ruslan, Druzhba, Timur, Moldova, Delight, Irinka.
Greenhouse requirements
A greenhouse designed for planting and growing grapes has its own distinctive features:
- The height of the greenhouse must be more than 2 meters. The dimensions will depend on the dimensions of the tapes for tying. It is better to choose an arched design.
- In order to prevent the spread of weeds, insect pests and drafts in the greenhouse, it is better to make a small layer of concrete foundation.
- In order to keep warm and well, light penetrates without obstacles, it is necessary to make the casing of high-quality material. Transparent honeycomb polycarbonate works best. A distinctive feature is considered to be year-round use. A film cover is also used.
- Many grape varieties begin to bear fruit immediately after planting 5 years later. Therefore, the greenhouse frame must be made of a durable material that will last for many years.
- It is better to provide the greenhouse with artificial heating. For this purpose, infrared lamps are suspended, and conventional heating devices are also suitable.
- It is also recommended to install lamps to create artificial lighting.
- The room must be regularly ventilated. For a small greenhouse, it is enough to make two opening vents.
If all these conditions are met, the culture will develop well, and problems will not arise.
Features of the preparation of the greenhouse
Before you start planting grape seedlings in a greenhouse at your dacha, you need to carry out preparatory work.
You should first prepare the soil. Grapes like light, fertile soil with good aeration. The substrate is prepared from sand, peat, limestone, loam and fertile soil. It is recommended to add mineral components. The resulting soil mixture is poured into each pit intended for planting. If there are a lot of seedlings, then instead of separate depressions, a trench of the required depth and width is dug.
To protect the vine from burns in hot weather, in a horizontal position, a wire is pulled at a distance of 45 cm from the walls and ceiling of the greenhouse. The wire will limit the stretching of the branches, and they will not touch the red-hot partitions of the structure.
Landing features
Planting seedlings in the greenhouse starts in November or early spring. The seedlings must be healthy, free of damage, freezing marks and have strong roots.
It is important to know how to plant grapes indoors. Recesses for planting shrubs are made at a distance of 48 cm from the greenhouse wall. The interval between the seedlings themselves should be at least 1.5 cm. The scheme recommended to follow when planting grapes in a polycarbonate greenhouse:
- the depth of the pit is 68 cm, the width is 80 cm, at the same stage, a support for tying is installed;
- a layer of wood ash is placed on the bottom;
- the drainage layer must be covered;
- install a tube that is useful for watering;
- then a layer of fertile soil is poured and watered;
- seedlings are planted and sprinkled with earth.
Growing grapes in a greenhouse or greenhouse will not be difficult if you follow all the basic rules.
Care
The question of how to care for grapes, especially often arises among novice gardeners. Care consists in maintaining the desired level of temperature, humidity and lighting. The air temperature in the greenhouse depends on the stage of vegetative development of the culture:
- In the spring, when the kidneys begin to form, the optimal numbers on the thermometer are +15 degrees, at night - not lower than +8 degrees.
- During the flowering period, the temperature should be even higher - up to +25 degrees, at night - not lower than +15 degrees.
- A hot climate is necessary during the ripening period of berries. During this period, the temperature should be raised to +30 degrees, and at night +20 degrees.
In addition to these rules, care involves setting a schedule for irrigation, fertilizing, loosening and weeding the soil, as well as pruning branches.
For pollination, bees should be attracted to the premises. If this does not work well, then you can carry out the procedure yourself. To do this, once a day (preferably before lunch), you should gently shake the grape branches.
Grapes grown in a greenhouse are rarely attacked by pests and infectious diseases. But experienced gardeners still recommend preventive treatment. Common diseases affecting culture include: mildew, anthracnose, powdery mildew, gray rot. Dangerous pests for grapes are grape mite, leaf rollers, aphids.
If the greenhouse is not equipped with a heating system, then in mid-October the grape bushes should be hidden from the coming cold weather. The branches are tilted to the ground and covered with, for example, roofing felt, a warm blanket, sawdust or spruce branches.
Pruning
The formation of the bush should be carried out annually. The procedure allows you to leave the healthiest and most fruitful shoots. In addition, the likelihood of contracting infections is reduced. Light and heat are distributed evenly to all parts of the plant.
Some time after landing, the first pruning grapes... Remove dry, damaged branches, which take away extra strength and nutrients. Weak and unnecessary branches should be cut regularly.
The classic grape pruning scheme is as follows:
- the strongest shoot is initially determined, which will serve as the central stem;
- the selected strong stem is cut off, leaving two or three eyes;
- in the next season, two new shoots appear from the left eyes, one of them is cut short (by 2-3 eyes), and the other long (by 8-9 eyes);
- it is advisable to start trimming from the bottom.
This procedure is repeated annually. Non-main lateral branches should be cut to the first leaf, sterile shoots to the fifth leaf. This will leave more room for the development of fertile shoots.
Top dressing
The addition of additional nutrients ensures healthy growth and development of grapes. Disease and pest resistance increases.
Top dressing of grapes is carried out in four stages:
- in the spring when planting (potash, phosphorus and nitrogen components are added);
- two weeks before flowering (it is better to use organic matter and mineral compositions, a composition is suitable, for example, from rotted manure, potassium sulfate and superphosphate);
- at the initial stage of berry formation (the amount of potassium and phosphorus in the compositions is increased);
- fertilizers are necessary during the period of active ripening of the bunches.
Top dressing is applied in specially dug grooves near each trunk. Superphosphate and compositions based on potassium and phosphorus elements are suitable as top dressing. You should be careful with nitrogen fertilizers.
During the formation and budding period, it is recommended to add ammonium nitrate. It promotes the rapid and good development of green mass and buds. It is useful to add superphosphate before flowering.
Watering
The grapes do not need frequent watering. Excessive soil moisture leads to the fact that roots begin to rot and berries crack. Water should not be poured under the very root of the bush.Be sure to make grooves or pour water into the tubes that were inserted at the stage of preparing the pit.
The first watering is carried out before planting the seedling. For each dug hole, 20 liters of warm, settled water are calculated. After a week, watering is repeated. To prevent moisture from evaporating, it is advisable to mulch the soil. Peat, sawdust, moss are suitable as mulch.
During the ripening period of grapes, watering is reduced. If this condition is not taken into account, then the berries will rot and crack. In hot summer, water should be done once a week.
Prepare water for irrigation in advance. It should be warm and settled. Watering is best done in the early morning. It is not recommended to water in the evening, as humid air at night negatively affects the development of culture.
