Growing a good harvest of delicious grapes on your site is a matter of honor for any summer resident. A large bunch of sweet berries for the next season will be provided on the condition of a proper wintering. It is in this article that we will analyze when to cover the grapes for autumn in autumn and do it correctly.
Do I need to cover the grapes for the winter?
It could be assumed that in warm regions shrubs do not need shelter. In fact, the above-ground part may well survive at a temperature not lower than -15 ° C. When it gets colder, the death of the eyes on the shoots is inevitable. And only a few days are enough for almost all the bushes to become frozen. The worst thing is that the chances are similar for both young and mature bushes.
With the above-ground part, everything is clear. But is it necessary to cover the grapes for the winter for the roots, because they should not react so quickly to lowering the temperature. Strangely enough, but the roots will feel the discomfort already at -6 ° C. And here everything is much more complicated, because the root system can not recover, as it probably is with the aboveground part.
As for the moment, when to cover the grapes for the winter, the weather forecast will come to your aid. As soon as a confident minus has established on the thermometer, and according to forecasts it is expected to cool down, you can start to cover. For each region this is its own period.
How to cover young seedlings of grapes for the winter?
No matter which type of shelter you enjoy, you need to prepare the bushes approximately the same. Before you cover the grapes for the winter, the bushes need to be properly prepared:
- First we carefully remove all the bushes from the tapestries;
- then you need to trim the bushes, removing all plant remains and trimming vines;
- do not forget about the treatment of plants with copper sulfate or preparations like "Dnok";
- after such preparations we abundantly water each bush and do not forget about baits in case of appearance of rodents on the site.
What can you hide the grapes for the winter?
Now the most important part, namely the choice of the type of shelter. Always harbor any hybrid varieties, young seedlings and frost-resistant varieties. There are three main options, than you can hide the grapes for the winter:
- Most often use hilling . It is recommended to use it for young shrubs. If you grow grapes in areas with a mild climate, hilling is acceptable for adult bushes. The shelter is in an earthen mound about 25 cm high. So we protect only the root part, therefore it is suitable for warm regions.
- A good option of shelter is half . In this case, you hide only that above-ground part of the bush, which is as close to the ground as possible. Now use the so-called sleeves made of straw or agrofiber, which literally pulls the bush. But again, this is only a partial shelter, and therefore it fits more for the middle and warm stripes.
- For complete shelter , even old things from the closet are used. Previously, bushes are removed from the trellis and wait for the full fall of the foliage. Then cut and bend to the ground. It is important to use only natural materials, then all of this is insulated from above with a heater. Be sure to make sure that the covering film does not touch the kidneys, otherwise prohibitions can not be avoided. As for the insulation, then instead of a special film, it is permissible to use onion husk, dry grass or slate. This option of shelter provides more guarantees that the bushes will survive.
Important! In the question of how to properly cover the grapes for the winter, there are a couple of characteristics. Never take land near the bushes, only the soil from a distance of at least two meters is suitable for shelter. Do not forget to make an earthen cushion under the vine of sufficient width, remember the measure and do not throw too much insulation on the film.