Shelter of grapes for the winter in the Urals

There is an opinion among summer residents that grapes can be grown only in the southern regions, and the Urals, with its unpredictable summers and 20-30-degree frosts, are not suitable for this crop. However, you can grow a vine in the Urals, if you know how to cover the grapes for the winter.

Growing grapes in the Urals requires the correct selection of varieties and the exact implementation of agrotechnical recommendations.

Features of viticulture in the Urals

For planting, early or medium-early grape varieties are best suited, which have time to ripen in 3-4 months. They must be winter hardy. This property should not be confused with frost resistance, which means the ability of grapes to withstand short-term frosts. Winter-hardy grape varieties are prepared for strong temperature changes throughout the winter season. However, at very low temperatures, young grape bushes can die, so grapes are covered in the Urals in winter. To do this, experienced growers keep a variety of covering materials on the farm: straw, boards, burlap, spunbond.

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Preparatory work in the vineyard

Improperly sheltered vines face many dangers:

• young branches and roots can become food for mice;
• on the branches, the formation of molds is possible;
• kidneys may freeze.

Preparatory activities:

• if dry weather sets in in autumn, it is necessary to water the vineyard well and fertilize with minerals;
• carry out preventive treatment of bushes;
• remove the vine from the trellis and tie it into bundles;
• prepare covering material and trenches for shelter.

Vineyard pruning rules

Vineyard pruning could be done in the spring, but in the fall it has several advantages:

• young, still unripe vines can freeze in winter, so they should be pruned after the leaves fall;
• pruning will reduce the volume of the bush, which will facilitate its shelter;
• in spring, sap flow begins – the loss of juice from cut branches will weaken the vine and reduce its yield.

The features of grape pruning in the Urals are the following recommendations:

• bushes should not be pruned in the first year;
• it is necessary to remove all shoots and stepchildren to a lignified branch;
• approximately 12 eyes and 4 shoots should be left.

Covering material

All material used for shelter should be decontaminated after it is removed from the vineyard in spring, and stored in a dry place. In the fall, you need to get it and prepare for use:

• review, reject and destroy damaged boards or straw mats;
• collect and dry the fallen leaves, and then carry out the treatment with disinfectants;
• spruce spruce branches will become an excellent covering material – it will protect the vine from mice;
• prepare and dry medicinal plants that will scare away pests – tansy, calendula, wormwood and others;
• cover the covering material with these herbs.

Covering the vineyard for the winter

There are different ways to hide the vine. They need to be covered when frosts are below minus five degrees, since light frosts only harden the vine. The first time after shelter, you need to monitor the air temperature. If it rises above six degrees Celsius, mold fungi will begin to multiply, which will lead to the death of the vine. In this case, you need to remove the covering material, open the vine and air it, and when the temperature drops to minus five again, cover it.

Shelter on deck

When covering grapes, care must be taken to ensure that its lashes are raised above the ground, otherwise they may rot. First, a plank flooring is laid on the bars, and vines tied in a bundle are laid on it. The place under the flooring and around it is cleaned of leaves, branches and other debris. Further, it is necessary to cover the grapes with spruce branches, and close the top with covering material – a film or roofing felt. Since each centimeter of snow cover retains one degree of heat, half a meter of snow will allow the grapes to overwinter without additional shelter.

However, if the winter is not snowy, insulation of the vine is required. Sawdust, foliage, boards are laid out on the spruce branches, and on top they are covered with a film or other covering material. Vents should be left on the sides so that the vine can breathe freely. The roots of the grapes should also be covered. A good way is to warm the near-stem circle with spruce branches covered with snow.

Shelter of grapes under a layer of dry snow

Many people use the air-dry method of sheltering grapes. First, they bend the vine and pin it to the ground, but so that it is ten centimeters above the ground. From above, they are insulated with foliage, sawdust or straw, then burlap or a dark film is thrown over the wire as a covering material and covered with soil from the row-spacing along the edges. The shelter should have ventilation holes. From above it is covered with a layer of snow.

Multilayer shelter

You can use 3-4 layers of covering material through which water does not penetrate, and the grapes can breathe. During frosts, an ice crust forms on it, which does not let the cold through.

After airing, it is necessary to cover the grapes again from spring frosts.

Vertical shelter of grapes

In some cases, the vine has to be covered directly on the trellis. In this case, it is surrounded by spruce branches on all sides and tied. Then the building is covered with a dense layer of snow, so that a snow cap forms. We must constantly ensure that the top layer of snow does not melt, otherwise the vine will freeze. At the same time, it is necessary to cover the roots – they are covered with earth and covered with spruce branches.

Covering the vineyard with laminate

Polystyrene-based laminate is an excellent covering material. Due to its low thermal conductivity and high air permeability, it will provide effective protection for grapes.

Application technology:

• remove the vines from the trellis, tie them into bundles and lay them out on the ground;
• stretch the laminate over them;
• fix the edges with stones, and then sprinkle with a dense layer of earth;
• Leave both ends of the roll open for ventilation.

Removing shelter in the spring

The overwintered vineyard is usually opened after the spring snowmelt, when the frosts pass – around April or early May. At night, it is better to cover it with a film, since spring frosts are still possible. During the day, the covering material is removed for several hours, but it is better to do this in the evening or in cloudy weather so that the vine does not get burned.

In order to stimulate the growth of grapes in the spring, a vertical pipe for irrigation is installed next to each bush. It should go into the ground to a depth of 50 cm.

It goes to the roots and warms them up, as a result of which the kidneys wake up faster.

To protect the grapes at this time from recurrent frosts, trellis poles are installed next to the bushes, on which covering material can be quickly thrown and fixed.

Growing grapes requires labor, time and experience. But they will more than pay off with a rich harvest of delicious berries.