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Grapes are an exquisite autumn delicacy. And delicious homemade grape wine cannot even be compared with store brands. The ability to grow separately table and technical grapes is considered by many to be a luxury. An excellent solution to the issue is grape varieties that are suitable for both food and wine making.
Lydia belongs to the American grape varieties. Lydia grapes are a hybrid that is part of the Isabella group of varieties. Unlike Isabella, Lydia grapes are considered not only a technical variety, but also a table variety. Vine growers sometimes call this grape differently – Lydia pink, Isabella pink. Clusters are usually tied in medium sizes and gain weight up to 120 g.
Variety description
The berries are oval / round in shape, they are distinguished by their red color and high sugar content – approximately 19%. The grapes are covered with a natural wax coating that gives the berries a purple hue (as in the photo). Variety Lydia has a peculiar taste, with a slight aroma of strawberries.
Advantages of grapes:
- brushes ripen well;
- frost resistance index up to -22-26˚С, resistance to diseases;
- the Lydia variety is tolerant of high humidity, but does not welcome fluid stagnation;
- able to winter without additional shelter.
The disadvantages of Lydia grapes include the small size of the berries. A peculiar taste cannot be considered a minus. Rather, we can say that these are grapes for an amateur.
Features of cultivation and care
For the arrangement of the vineyard, sunny areas without drafts are selected. The best option is sunny slopes or the south side of buildings, fences.
The distance between the rows of Lydia grapes should be at least 90 cm. Lydia grapes can be planted both in spring and autumn. Each option has pros and cons:
- in the autumn, there is more choice of planting material, but plantings will be very sensitive to low temperatures;
- the spring planting of Lydia grapes has more time to get used to and get stronger by autumn, but there is a high probability of a lack of moisture for seedlings.
Some growers practice a special method of planting Lydia grape seedlings. In autumn, a hole is dug and a drainage layer of expanded clay or gravel is laid on the bottom. Then the pit is filled with excavated soil, with a layer of soil alternating with a layer of fertilizer. All soil layers mix well. By the time of the spring planting of Lydia grapes, the entire mixture in the pit is well infused.
Landing stages
- The trench for planting Lydia’s seedlings is being prepared in advance. It is believed that the less fertile the soil, the larger the hole must be dug. Finely planted vine bushes and poorly sheltered, are able to freeze out in severe frost. Therefore, the optimal size of the pit is 80-90 cm in diameter, the depth is 40-45 cm (loamy soils) or 50-55 cm – sandy loam.
- When preparing a trench, the upper nutrient soil layer is deposited separately from the lower, less fertile one. Layers are laid in the trench: fertile soil, compost (humus), wood ash. All components are mixed and covered with a layer of barren land from above. The trench is repeatedly watered with water to shrink the soil.
- After 2-3 weeks, you can plant seedlings of the Lydia variety – just make small holes for the bushes in the trench.
- Before planting in the pit, the roots of the grapes are neatly straightened. The seedling is covered with earth and watered abundantly to eliminate possible voids formed in the soil. It is advisable to mulch the area around the seedling.
When choosing a method of planting bushes (trench / pit), one must take into account that more favorable opportunities for the development of grapes are created in the trench, since there is a lot of space in the trench for the development of the root system of the Lydia grape bush. In addition, moisture will be evenly distributed between the bushes and gets to the roots faster, especially when using drip irrigation.
But we must not lose sight of the fact that only one variety of grapes can be planted in one row. Therefore, if you plan to plant one bush of Lydia grapes, then it is better to dig a hole.
The peculiarities of caring for Lydia grapes include constant pinching and chasing (removing a young segment of the shoot with eight leaves). Chasing is done in July, and stepson Lidia begins much earlier.
Rules for watering and fertilizing grapes
There are no strict requirements for watering Lydia – as the site dries up. But we must admit that full-fledged timely watering is the key to a good and high-quality harvest. To make it convenient to water the grapes, a shallow groove (about 15-20 cm) is dug around the seedling of Lydia in the form of a circle. After watering, it is recommended to mulch the earth.
Top dressing is selected depending on the quality of the soil, the time of its introduction:
- before flowering (two weeks), a mixture of ammonium nitrate, superphosphate and potassium salt is used (per liter of water – 10 g, 20 g, and 5 g, respectively);
- when Lydia grapes begin to ripen, it is recommended to water the plant with a solution: superphosphate 20 g and potassium salt – 5 g per bucket of water.
Harvest
Ripe bunches can be harvested 145-156 days after the first ovaries, most often harvesting time is at the end of August or September. In the harvest year, one bush brings at least 30-35 kg of fruit. A feature of the Lydia variety is that ripe berries easily crumble, so the collection of brushes is carried out in dry, calm weather.
When cutting brushes of the Lydia variety, they are immediately examined – damaged berries are deposited separately. Boxes with holes are suitable as containers – for ventilation of the crop. More than 13 kg are not collected in one box, as the grapes can be wrinkled.
A special advantage of Lydia grapes is that they can be enjoyed both fresh and canned (compotes, jams).
Pruning a grape bush
From the second year of the plant’s life, it is recommended to form a vine of the Lydia variety – pruning three times a season.
In the spring, a procedure is carried out for sanitary purposes – dried shoots are cut off. Pruning can only be done at a constant temperature not lower than + 5˚ C and always before the juices begin to move.
In summer, the pruning procedure helps to thin out the Lydia grape bush. Stepchildren are cut to improve the ventilation of the vine.
The first time the shoot of the Lydia variety is cut off at the level of 2-4 eyes. Every year, the pruning height rises – 8 eyes, then 15 eyes. The recommended load on the Lydia grape bush is 36-49 eyes.
Preparing the vine for wintering
Lydia grapes belong to frost-resistant varieties. However, additional shelter will not be superfluous, especially in regions where winters are very severe. The newly planted vine definitely needs shelter. It is recommended to take time for covering work in November: the Lydia vine is carefully removed from the trellis, tied up and sprinkled with a layer of earth. Thus, a bed of 10-15 cm is formed.
Diseases and pests of grapes
A significant advantage of the Lydia variety is resistance to mildew damage. To prevent infection with other diseases, you will have to take preventive measures. The most common diseases:
- anthracnose (pathogens – fungi) – is expressed in the appearance of dark spots on the foliage and affects the aerial part of the grape bush (leaves, stems, shoots, fruits), leading to the death of the vine. It spreads through infected residues, soil, seeds. Control methods – spraying a grape bush with Bordeaux liquid. Prevention: destruction of damaged areas of the plant and burning them with plant residues after harvesting;
- gray rot (fungal disease) is especially dangerous because the grape bush can get sick at any time, and all parts of the vine are damaged. The most common causes of the disease are poor ventilation of the grapes (strong thickening) and prolonged wet weather. Chemical control is carried out by spraying the plant with Ronilan and Rovral. Prevention: refusal of nitrogen fertilizers, removal in September of leaves located near the clusters and below them.
The most common pests of the Lydia variety are:
- spider mite – affects the foliage and leads to its shedding. Methods of struggle: spring spraying with a solution of “DNOC” before bud break and autumn treatment of the bush with Phosphamide. Preventive methods: removal and burning of damaged leaves, weeding – tick breeding grounds;
- leafworm – caterpillars that feed on leaves and fruits, which leads to rotting of clusters in wet weather. To combat the pest, it is recommended to treat the bushes and adjacent soil with a DNOC solution in the spring. As a preventive measure, it is necessary to provide bushes with illumination and ventilation;
- phylloxera is an insect that infects the root system of the Lydia variety (the root type of the insect), and sometimes the entire aerial part of the bush (the leaf type of the pest). The defeat of the grapes manifests itself in the form of swollen roots or leaves with swollen areas. Control methods – spraying the bushes with a solution of Confidor. Prevention – covering the soil near the Lydia grape bushes with fine-grained sand.
Lydia grapes boast not only delicious fruits and high yields, but also a beautiful decorative look – it perfectly wraps gazebos and awnings. Therefore, it is not surprising that this variety is in great demand in Moldova and in the south of Our Country and Ukraine.
