We purchased a home in March this year and it came with 150 feet of grape vines. We do not know what type, only that they are table grapes. They have lots of grapes and the grapes are green and seem to be growing. Our question is: When do you usually harvest grapes? September, October, November? My husband is getting anxious about them. How do you tell when they are ready for harvest? Also, do they need any watering during this time of the year. Thanks for any help and suggestions.
It depends on the variety. Some of the earliest ones, like Price and Interlaken, are ripe, or very close, now (last week of August). By contrast, Concord won't be ripe until mid October most years. Most grapes are edible as soon as they have colored, with a few exceptions, though sweetness continues to improve in most if they are left a while longer (anywhere from a week to three weeks after coloring).
-Lon Rombough
http://www.bunchgrapes.com
Patrick and Terry,
How many plants, or trunks, do you have in that length of grape vines? Have the berries colored up yet? Are they sweet? Do they have seeds? Have the birds or raccoons found them. 
.?
Don't know how I missed your question ... and it's been a few weeks now, but as far as watering; if they're thick-trunked, well established vines, they've found water. I live in Oregon's vineyard country, and have learned that grapes will send roots as far as necessary to find water. I only watered mine for their first 2 - 3 years, and after twenty years, and several severe droughts, they've never shown signs of stress.
The real project will be pruning them... You don't want to leave the matted mess of just one season's growth. You'll have to prune off, I'd say - 80% of that new growth - depending on which method you use. And if they haven't been pruned for some time ... do your homework!
You don't have to answer the questions above, I'm just curious?
Viron.
I live in North West, North Battleford, Saskatchewan, Canada, I was given four Concord vines back in 1997 but they never did give me any grapes till this year, and I mean they gave me grapes + this year, The only thing I did last year was to cut them back to about Three feet from the ground, and now I have grapes from that point down to the ground, we've had two good frosts now, -2c and -3 c, all are dark purple and have been for two weeks now, the leaves are turning yellow but still on the vines, but the grapes are not that sweet to eat yet, do I go ahead and pick now before a killer frost or wait for them to sweeten up first
Oh is there a time of year that I should fertilize and whats the right number to use 00 00 00
Jack
Canadian Eh,
Grapes don't get any sweeter or riper after picking. Might as well leave them on the vine in case the vines are putting more into the grapes.
Publication CIS 1043 from the University of Idaho lists Concord and Concord Seedless as requiring 2,000 to 2,500 degree-day
heat units. Maybe you will need an earlier ripening variety.
I am surprised that Concord survives in your climate, must be Zone 1 or 2? This spring I selected three cold-hardy varieties of table grapes to plant near Valley City North Dakota (Zone 3): Valiant, Swenson Red, and Island Belle. I purchased from Burnt Ridge Nursery in Onalaska Washington USA. I won't know how well they will do for at least another year or two.
Idyllwild
simplepress
jafar
Marsha H
Viron
John S
2 Guest(s)