How to Prune Grapevines

Part Two

Recap……. Count nodes contain the buds that are

deliberately left at pruning They produce count shoots which will

produce the flowers which become the fruit

At the same time as flowering the new buds are forming in the shoot

Shoots become canes when they turn brown

Pruning is a matter of leaving count nodes

Cane Pruning

Canes from the previous season are rapped around fruiting wires and then tied down at the ends

Cane Pruning

There are many different versions and types of cane pruning

4 canes

4 canes

Or two canes

This is the same vine but

later on

Cane Pruning Technique Canes are between 8-20

count nodes Spurs are retained to

produce replacement canes for the following year

Cane Pruning Technique Vines are head trained

canes and spurs are selected from the head

Vines may be unilateral or bilateralCanes run one way or both

ways

There are three stages

Stage One Select the canes and spurs that are

wanted for the coming season and cut off the rest

Spurs are retained to provide the canes for next season

Canes

Make sure you DO NOT select canes older than last seasons

These will not contain buds that are fruitful

These were last years

canes

These were last years

canes

DO NOT use these

Stage two

Pull out the undesired canes and wood

Stage Three

Wrapping and tying the canes onto the fruiting wire

Recap……..

Select the canes and spurs that are wanted for the coming season

and cut off the rest

Pull out the undesired canes and wood Wrap and tie the canes onto the fruiting

wire

What canes do you select? When selecting canes, the following

characteristics should be considered:

Cane Selection

Well matured canes with good colour, brown to the tip and no green

Free from damage by pests, diseases and machines

Cane Selection

Average diameter (ie not too thin or too thick)

Internode length 60-80 mm No watershoots

They are not fruitful No laterals

They are also not fruitful

What are laterals?

Shoots that arise from the main shootLike branches

Laterals

Lateral bud

Laterals come from the lateral or prompt bud

Cutting a Cane

Before tying down you need to cut through the last node

Make Sure.... You remove the bud BUT not the

swelling

Cutting and TyingWhen cutting a cane If this is the last

node you want to keep

Then cut the cane here

Cutting and TyingWhen cutting a cane

Tie the cane in the last internode

Cutting and TyingWhen cutting a cane

The swelling will prevent the tie from falling off

But you must remove the buds so they don’t burst

Next….. Spur Pruning