On February 25, 2009, I prepared a small area for planting 8 Mars Seedless grape vines, which I had purchased from Lowe's in Danville,
VA, several weeks earlier.
I paid 9.97 per 2-pack of these grapes.
The weed block cloth was approximately 25.00 for a 100
foot by 3 foot roll.
Grass clippings - FREE!
The location is at the top of a gentle eastern slope, at the outside of our
fenced in dog lot.
This area receives full sun all day, from the rising sun in the east, the overhead noon sun and the western setting
sun, this should be the perfect spot!
I am planning to let the vines climb on the dog lot fence.
I purchased a roll of
3' X 100' long black landscaping cloth (app 24.00 at Home Depot in Hillsborough, NC)
I simply unrolled it over the ground's surface,
and used gardening staples (about 10.00 for a box of 75, also from Home Depot) to secure the edges to the ground.
Then I opened
a space for each grape vine in the cloth by scoring an X in the material using a sharp kitchen knife.
In the opened cloth, I
then used a small shovel to "excavate" an area for the vine, deep enough to cover the roots, and wide enough in diameter that the
soil was loosened well for the roots to spread. I removed grass plants as I worked. I mixed a small amount of organic
fertilizer & lime into the soil, then gently placed each plant in its "next" and covered the roots, firmly tamping the soil
down around the roots.
After all 8 of the vines were planted, I mulched them with grass clippings from our "collection", at a
depth of 2-4 inches.
Now, I can hardly wait for those fresh, seedless grapes, and homemade raisins!
Today's Garden Buddies ARE.................
Rex
Jake
Ben
Spaz
I used a no-till method to prepare the spot - I covered the area I wanted to use with sevearl layers of newsprint, then a layer of
"weed block" sheeting. This will prevent weeds from coming thru, without having to use poison. The weed block sheeting allows
water and nutrients to get thru to the soil.
After the weed block sheeting was laid down, I cut cross-marks where I wanted the dormant grape plants to be. I paced these off, spacing
them approximately 8 feet apart. After planting and replacing the soil (which I mixed in with a little bit of Miracle Organic
fertilizer), I pulled the plastic back around the dirt
After all 8 of my grape plants were in the group, I added a layer of dried grass clippings to cover the entire length of the weed
block sheeting, a couple of inches thick.
The finished area.....we plan to train the grapes on the dog lot fencing, and look forward to having grapes for years to come,
as well as an attractive "hedge" along the fence.
