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Notes From the
Vintner
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Welcome
to our column. We hope that you will return to
learn interesting notes on wine, and related
subjects. Wine is a great gift from God to be used
for the enjoyment of man. It is a food, and should
be treated as such. It is meant to lift up the body
and lighten the soul. 1/1/05
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Happy
New Year ! ! !
May your new year be better than last year, and not half
as good as next year! So you see, we believe that the best
is yet to come. Like making wine…we believe that it is
going to be the best wine ever in a few months. So a toast
to all who are planning a better tomorrow, and a double
glass of wine for all who have the good smarts to know that
it is today, the present that is the most important of
time.
While back at the vineyard….a few good folks have asked
about making cutting of grape vines for plants.
This is the way to
make cuttings.
- Make sure that
the cane that you are going to use for cuttings has no
disease or damage, and that the cane is about the size of
a pencil
- Find a good
cane that will produce several cuttings. Each cutting
should be about eight to twelve inches long depending on
the type of grape, and have three buds. The distance
between the buds will be different for different grapes.
Using a sharp shears, make a straight cut across the cane
¼ inch below the lowest bud. Then count up three
buds and make a 45 degree cut 1 ½ inches above the
third bud.
- Take your
shears and trim off any tentacles that are still on the
vine. You want the cuttings to be neat and clean.
- Take the
cuttings and bundle them in packages of 100 by binding
them with string. When you finish you should have a neat
bundle of cuttings that is bound tightly together.
- Take your
cuttings very soon after you make them, and bury them in
the ground in a mound. Place the cutting in the hole
about 6 inches deep with the pointed end down. Then cover
them with about 6 inches of dirt, and leave until
spring.
- This will
allow the cuttings to callous over on the flat end. The
soil will keep moisture in the hole and no air will dry
them cutting out.
- In spring, dig
the cuttings up and place them in a bed 8 inches apart to
grow for a year. You can purchase a root growth to dip
the flat end of the cutting in before you stick them in
the well cultured soil. When planting the cutting, place
in the ground all the way to about 1 inch below the top
bud. Remember that the flat end goes down.
Now you are ready
to produce thousands of plants, or at least a few … As
you watch them grow, enjoy a glass of wine.
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