OF GRAPES FOR OUR AREA
June 24, 2010
by Tom Akins, Victoria County Master Gardener Intern
edited by Charla Borchers Leon,
Victoria County Master Gardener
VICTORIA COUNTY
MASTER GARDENER ASSOCIATION
Blanc du Bois is a white grape that produces a light amber colored juice that makes excellent wine, jelly or grape juice.
The No. 1 use for grapes is wine production, No. 2 for raisins, No. 3 for table grapes, and No. 4 for juices and jellies.
So while the grape growers in this area don't produce many table grapes, they do supply grapes for the first and fourth most likely uses of grapes - for wine, juices and jellies.
GOOD FOR YOUR HEALTH
Grapes are an excellent source of manganese, vitamin B6, thiamin, potassium and vitamin C and are considered good for your health.
They contain flavonoids, which are phytochemicals that are antioxidant and may help play a role in preventing heart disease, cancer and other diseases.
FIVE VARIETIES FOR OUR AREA
While they are a nice addition to the home garden, grapes must be managed closely. They can be grown on a trellis or arbor in your landscape.
Although grapes grow and produce well in Texas, several serious factors need to be noted or avoided.
These include Pierce disease in South and East Texas and black rot during wet-rainy periods (select tolerant varieties to avoid this); cotton root rot on high pH soils; poor drainage on tight, clay soil; and salty irrigation water.
With these issues in mind, there only five varieties of grapes recommended for our area.
GROWING CONDITIONS
Grapes can grow in a wide range of soils, but poorly-drained areas should be avoided. If you have black clay, plant vines in beds raised with topsoil. Grapes can be on a trellis or arbor depending on your space.
If you want several vines or varieties, select a larger area that can provide you with rows 12 feet apart and vines planted 8 feet apart.
For smaller areas, accommodations can be made as I saw an arbor in a family's backyard recently. It was in one end of the yard, 8-feet by 8-feet and 6-feet tall with the vine planted on the corner post and trained over the top with easy access to pick the grapes.
After you find your best location with full sun and a well-drained soil, it's time to plant. The best time to purchase and plant grapes is January or February.
Use healthy 1-year-old vines. Bareroot vines from nurseries should be planted as soon as possible, whereas container-grown plants can be planted anytime, but early spring is best.
PLANTING YOUR VINE
When planting your vine, the hardest thing to do is to cut all canes except the most vigorous one and prune back to two buds. Trim off broken or split roots. Dig the hole the size of the root system. Pack the soil tightly using the soil from the hole, not potting soil. The vine should not have fertilizer or starting solution when planting.
Water well with at least 2 to 3 gallons of water.
You must also be patient, as it takes time to produce strong vines. To ensure healthy vine development, pinch off all the clusters for the first and second year as they appear. Also, pinch off all but one cluster per shoot in the third and fourth year. Allow full production after the fifth year.
WILD VARIETY
Now, if you are like me and don't have the space to grow grapes, but want to make wine, juice and jelly, you can go with our native grape, the wild grape or mustang grape.
Mustang grapes grow all over the South, Central and East Texas, as well as northern Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.
The vines grow in river bottoms, on trees, and fences with runners growing more than 200 feet long.
In our area, mustang grapes ripen this time of year - from late June to late July. When ripe, they are dark purple to black in color.
Domestic grapes grow in clusters with six to 300 berries.
The wild mustang grapes have clusters with only two to 20 berries.
BE CAREFUL OF ACIDITY
If you try tasting them, you will quickly see that mustang grapes do not taste very good for fresh eating as they are very acidic. The high acidity in mustang grapes causes skin irritations in most people, until the acidity is corrected. When picking or handling mustang grapes, I suggest wearing disposable latex gloves.
When mustang grapes are ripe, the skin slips off easy when squeezed, so if you want to take the time to remove the skin you can make a white wine. But since much of the flavor is in the skin some prefer the red wine best.
THINGS TO REMEMBER
If you would like to make some homemade wine, juices or jellies from mustang grapes, things to remember are wear long sleeves and gloves when picking grapes or you will have skin irritations and purple hands; use the right amount of sugar and water dilution ratio to minimize acidity and make good-tasting juice and jelly; and time and practice will help you make a respectable juice, jelly or wine.
Although grape growers around the area now have grapes for sale, I almost forgot the most important point about mustang grapes when it comes to making homemade wine, juice or jelly - they are free when you have them on your land or are given permission to pick them elsewhere.
If you have the time and desire to make wine, grape juice or jelly from a planted vine or vineyard - try your hand at growing your own grapes. If not, opt for the wild side . and go natural with native mustang grapes.
Favorite varieties are red grapes that are great for juice, wine and jelly.
Black Spanish - A red grape used for wine and juices.
Blanc du Bois - A white grape for wine and juices.
Champanel - A red grape used mostly for juices and jellies.
Favorite - A red grape used for wine and juices.
Rouconeuf - A pink grape used for wine, juice and table grapes.
MASTER GARDENER SUMMER EVENT CALENDAR
July 12
Lunch and Learn With the Masters
Topic: Mulching and Composting
JULY 12-23
Junior Master Gardener Day Camp
Limited to the first 15 children ages 8 - 12 years
Registration deadline: July 7
Contact: Pat at pab@wblanchard.com or Vikki at 361-575-4581
BEGINNING AUG. 5
Master Gardener Fall Training Class
Application deadline: July 19
Applications are online @ www.vcmga.org
Contact: Victoria County Extension Office, 361-575-4581
AUG. 9
Lunch and Learn With the Masters
Topic: Planting a Fall Vegetable Garden