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Training and pruning in grapesTraining

Being a vine crop, training is essential for grapes.

Proper and effective shape can be formed by choosing appropriate

training system, which facilitate economic maintenance of vineyard

and easiness in cultural operations such as plant protection, pruning

and harvesting.

Different systems of training are available in grapes and selection

of a particular method depends on vigour of vine, varietal characters,

bearing habit, sunscald problems, earliness for other cultural

operations, climatic conditions and also capacity of owner for

investment.

Systems of training commonly followed in grapes include head,

kniffin, overhead trellis and bower. Next Previous End

Single shoot is allowed to grow from newly

planted vines, removing side shoots if

produced and by help of stake.

Head system

Advantages of this system are

easiness, inexpensiveness, suitability

in high density planting and possibility

of inter cultivation but yield per vine is

usually low.

This method is especially suitable for

less vigorous varieties producing

fruitful shoots from basal buds such

as Beauty Seedless, Delight, and

Perlette.

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Heading back the main single stem at a height of 1.2 metres permits side shoots.

Vines trained on head system have bushy shape, occupy less space and can be adopted for high density planting vineyards.

Later two secondaries from each lateral are allowed.

In general, four laterals at about 75 cm above ground level, in all directions are retained after removing all other shoots produced.

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Espalier or cordon system

Vines are trained with one or two shoots perpendicular to main stem using horizontally fixed wires.

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Kniffin system

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A four-cane system named after Mr. William Kniffin of New York who

developed this method during 1850.Vine is allowed to grow single

stemmed up to one meter and then two arms are allowed on either

side using horizontal trellises.

Second pair of arms is allowed at 50 cm above the lower layer, thus a

total of four arms are maintained per vine.

Bearing shoots are seen hanging freely without any need for tying.

Varieties like Thompson Seedless, Bhokri, Delight, Kandhari, Beauty

Seedless and Perlette respond well to this system.

Sometimes, three horizontal lines at different heights are maintained

in certain areas, the system being called as Modified Kniffin.

Main disadvantage in Kniffin system is that lower arms become

unproductive after a few years.

Overhead trellis system / Telephone system

Moderately vigorous varieties respond well to this method. Professor N. Gopalkrishnan introduced this to India during 1960 in Pune.

Vine is grown straight to a height of 160 cm and then horizontally to an over-head canopy on 3-5 wires fixed to cross arms at 45-60 cm apart which are usually 1.4 m long mounted on vertical posts.

This system is suitable for high temperature regions.

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Single stake system

o In this system, the vine is fastened to an upright support of a tree such as Erythrina indica.

oWhen the single trunk reaches a height of 1.5 M, it is tipped and encouraged to produce 4-5 secondary branches which themselves are going to be the fruiting branches or canes when they attain full maturity.

o From the second year onwards, the Erythrina indica plnats are also regularly pruned twice a year at the time of pruning grapevine.

o In October pruning, the canes are headed back to 3-4 buds per cane.

o These buds will be producing the fruiting shoots during spring and produce crop during summer.

o After harvest of fruits during April, the October spurs together with growths are pruned to foundation or renewal spurs viz., pruned back to a single bud. Next Previous End

There after, the type of pruning given in October April is repeated every year.After three such cycles (3 years), when the main trunk of the vine becomes sufficiently thick, a strong cane is selected at the time of October pruning and retained as further extension of trunk.This extension cane is tied horizontally on bamboo stake tied on Erythrina plants along the rows.Instead of bamboo stakes, trellis wire of GI can also be used.This system is suitable for varieties which bear at shorter cane like Bhokri and not for varieties that bear in longer canes.

Single stake system

The spacing recommended to be adopted for this system is 2.4 M x 2.4M. It is a common system in Western India.

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Bower / Arbour / Pandal / Pergola system

Most commonly adopted system in Tamil Nadu.

It gives high yield in vigorous varieties like Anab-e-shahi.

The vines are planted at wider spacing of 3.6M x 4.5M or 4.5M x 5.4M.

The main stem or trunk is allowed to grow from the rooted cutting.

The vines are trained single stemmed up to a height of 2 to 2.5 m and then laterals are spread over a criss cross network of wires supported by strong concrete, stone or wooden poles.

Pinching of growing point when the vine reaches height of pandal induces production of side shoots.

Two vigorous shoots in opposite direction are maintained initially as primary arms and three laterals spaced at 60 cm are developed on both sides as secondary arms on each primary shoot, thus there will be 12 secondary arms on each vine.

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Teritiaries will be allowed at 8-10 numbers per secondary arm, which after maturity constitute the fruiting canes.

Bower system is suitable for almost all varieties especially for vigorous ones like Anab-e-Shahi and Bhokri.

This is widely adopted in tropics throughout world to exploit the full productive potential of vines, which show apical dominance under tropics.

Though initial cost for establishing the pandal is higher, yields from vines on this system are also higher mainly due to large fruiting area provided.

It is possible to develop as many as 10 shoots/ m2 by subdividing the apices growing in horizontal plain.

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Advantages of pandal system

A tropical climate and mild winter as

prevailing in Tamil Nadu

encourages luxuriant growth,

consequently facilitates the harvest

of successive crops at an interval of

5 months.

The crops get enough sunshine

uniformly for their proper

development.

Plant protection measures are more

effective in this system.

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PRUNING Pruning is the most important operation to encourage fruiting

simultaneously maintaining the vigour of vine.

The yield of grapes is dependent to a larger extent on the method of

pruning.

Different varieties require different systems of pruning depending up

to their vigour and bearing habit.

Grape vine is a past season bearer.

The flower buds are differentiated in the previous season itself in a

cane.

The lateral mixed buds which have differentiated into flower bud will

be released as a shoot (current season growth) possessing leaves

and inflorescence.

This shoot is going to mature and become cane for the next

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In ‘Pacha Dhiraksha’, pruning shoots to 4 or 5 buds for summer crop and 3 or 4 buds for monsoon crop is recommended.

After building the canopy spread on the supporting system by proper trainng, the vines should be pruned once or twice in a year depending upon the climatic conditions in a locality.

In the mild tropical region, vines are pruned twice and the crop is harvested twice.

In varieties like ‘Gulabi’ and ‘Bangalore Blue’ which are fairly resistant to rain damage and in which cloudy weather and rains do not impair bud differentiation, pruning is done at one time of the year.

As a result, five crops are harvested every two years.

The growers adopt a pruning level of 4-5 bud level for pruning of all the matured canes which results in more exploitation of reserved food material leading to loss of vigour, quality and early setting of senility in the vines.

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Season of pruning

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Season of pruning and buds to be retained on canes are important

factors to be considered.

Growth behavior of grape vine differs in tropical and temperate

conditions.

In tropical conditions grape exhibits strong apical dominance and

sprouting of a fewer buds, necessitating retention of as much as 10

times more number of canes on a vine after pruning to get optimum

yield.

Best season for pruning vines is towards end of winter when they are

dormant.

In North India pruning is generally completed by mid-January.

Grape culture in Southwest India has some special features.

Vines exhibit continuous growth without entering into dormancy due to

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Pruning is possible two times a year under such conditions.

In Tamil Nadu, pruning in December-January gives yield in April-May,

called as summer crop and pruning in May-June results harvesting in

August-September, called as monsoon crop.

In certain pockets, pruning is adjusted in such a way to harvest crops

during every five months.

In Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Maharashtra, pruning is done during

summer (March-April) to induce vegetative growth, generally called as

'back pruning' or 'growth pruning', followed by pruning for fruiting during

September-October.

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Based on their fruiting habits, number of buds to be retained varies while

pruning.

Number of buds to be retained for different varieties is as follows: Bangalore Blue, Bhokri - 3-4 buds. Gulabi - 10-12 buds. Thompson Seedless - 10-14 buds. Beauty Seedless, Perlette, Cardinal - 4-5 buds. Anab-e-Shahi - 4-8 buds. Muscat, Pachadraksha - 5-6 buds.Pusa Seedless - 9-12 buds .

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To determine number of buds to be retained while pruning, one should

be aware of bearing habit of varieties grown.

In some varieties, basal buds of cane are fruitful whereas in a few

others, middle or even apical buds are fruitful.