Vicki: You need to talk to Herman, also of NJ, who is a long-time grape grower and used to post regularly until a dustup with a youngster from MA put him off. Herman has the varieties and care for grapes in NJ all figured out. If you title a post something like "Grapes, Calling Herman", you might be able to get his attention. Or search out one of his old posts and send him an e-mail. There is a lot more to growing grapes in NJ than meets the eye. I don't grow grapes here, except for one Concord for jellymaking, because the fungal problems are just too difficult for me. Herman has some varieties identified that seem to cause a lot less trouble. Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

fruitnut, that rundown was actually very helpful. That was a concern of mine, if it would grow new ones from the top of the 'trunk' or if it would keep expanding on its last years wood. Tart cherry - I hear they're *slightly* more hardy than the sweet. My citrus is already incredibly finicky, so I'm hoping the experience there can help me out. From what I understand they're prone to mildew, but I've gotta look into it some more. And thanks for the Double A recommendation, I found a few varieties that are well suited as table grapes to the bitter zone 3 climate and winters. Can you tell me how large/old they are when I would get them? I can't imagine they'd produce yet this year, but would I get grapes next year? It might say on the website, I'm on mobile so I may have missed it. They're very affordable, too! I'm leaning towards the St. Croix variety. Edit to add: the wealth of information on their "Learn" area is astounding! There's a whole power point like thing about pruning from just a cutting through the third or fourth growing season. This is exactly what I was looking for. This post was edited by cfox248 on Wed, Jul 16, 14 at 20:03

Okay, so you got the "grape growing bug" huh? Many people live in their homes for over 20 years and from day one often thought about growing some sort of fruit tree or another yet put it off for some reason. Many of their neighbours could be known to have such trees and could have planted them 10, 20 or even 30 years ago and its odd that most people don't pickup on that and get going themselves. Now for the real speech when it comes to growing grapes. Your best bet is to hit the garden centers in the spring and you'll probably pay about 10 bucks or so for a gallon pail with a vine in it. Buy at least 3 so they have company :) That's the easiest way and most newbies can do it this way. Once your vine(s) starts producing fruit, no matter what you initially paid to get it all going, the amount your vines yield will far exceed the low startup costs. Those thinking ahead to next spring should be doing many many other things right now-during the fall and yep, sometimes some of it can be done during the winter too. There's a fair amount of prep to get ready for your vines that will be available at the garden centers or nurseries next spring. First of all you should check with some of them and find out exactly when they get them each year and they'll give you a close enough date. Before that though, you have to worry about where you'll position these ever-advancing vines, you can't really change them to another location later on unless you are pretty lucky or you get advice from someone with more experience. Soil bed preperation is very very important and you'll need to prepare some kind of trellis-these things get realllll heavy too so be prepared to build strong supports. Choices for supports are the older cast iron plumbing pipes that are often ripped out of renovated homes and you use angle joiners etc. to make an overhead trellis. You can also use thick posts such as 4X4's-the kind used for fence building and build something that resembles a child's jungle gym. If you plan on placing the vines near your home, you can use thick wire or thick nylon mesh, or wooden lattice affixed to the home's walls to support the vines but remember this, the vines and fruit can weigh well into the hundreds of pounds during the years they produce decent amounts. Trust me on this too, you need to read read and then read about proper yearly maintenance-fertilizer, soil testing, cutting/pruning back once in awhile. Yeah I know, its sad to cut back something you desire to keep growing really fast but it IS important to do this, the pruning part is important to get rid of slow or poorly growing shoots and once pruned, the vines seem to take off once again. The dead stuff you ignore, stresses the vine s even more so get rid of the ugly stuff and treat the vines with the respect they deserve. Yep, some people I know have grown pretty good Concords and work at it alot all summer long and then again, some I know just abuse the heck out of them-the usual "I inherited these with the home I bought and I hate the things so I hope they die thing." The latter seem to grow more aggressively and maybe just maybe they're telling the guy something ya think (spite?)? To summarize the yearly yield thing here in as short an answer as possible, they do NOT always grow ALOT each year and some years they seem to just need a break as do crabapple trees and plum trees too. I live in the western part of Canada, we get pretty nice weather starting in May and it usually goes right until Halloween and almost always the grapes have been picked by then. I still have some Concords ripening right now, has alot to do with the fact we haven't had any frost this time of year but its coming. For making wine from these grapes, the first frost seems to help and they've always ripened at that point but frost seems to increase their sugar content without rotting them by then. Lastly, "if" you can find a friend or neighbour or someone in your city who's willing to provide you with some cuttings, try them too, you might be surprised in how well they grow. For this thread, too much to explain at why you could get some right now and keep them in the refrigerator (in peat moss) and they'd be okay to start next spring if so desired. Google it or search around and you'll find out how easy that really is. Yes I know, some things seem quite bizarre but strange things can and do work and I use this example: Where I live almost all seeds for the garden advise against planting anything until after the last frost. Well, on a package of dill seeds it also advises this. This year's dill will drop alot of stray seeds in my garden and come next spring when the garden is near frozen, I've got seedlings going-everywhere! Also, root crops can be planted late in the fall and by next spring they do start growing on their own. Carrots are easy and carrot seeds started now will lay dormant during the 6 months I'll see snow on the ground and then they'll grow with a vengeance next spring. Beets, turnips, some onions etc.-same thing, plant now. I've used these examples because for the grapes, they're even hardier than the dill and carrots so if they can grow here under many different conditions, harsh winters and serious owner neglect, if you are more serious and dedicated to growing your own for jelly, juice and wine etc., then you shouldn't have much to worry about. Personally, I'm quite serious about it and I protect my vines very well each winter-going on 12 years now-they need to be placed where there's little traffic around them and do NOT trample on their beds when the earth is rock-solid frozen if you can help it. Same goes for the spring when they put alot of energy into pushing away their former "winter blues." And for heaven's sakes, put aside the budget-starter-from-seed-thing and pay the nurseries or garden centers for the things they import each year and you'll be glad you did. When you need a helping hand, I'm sure they'll help as much as they possibly can. Grape vines can also teach you alot about patience to be sure. Good luck and I hope this addition reaches those who've asked before me....

A few years ago, I had taken a cutting of my grape vine, and rooted it. This year I took that 4 foot long grape vine and planted it on the outside corner of the potager. On the back right side. I figured it would be out the way, and could grow be trained along the fence in the back. The blackberry I got (Triple Crown) is supposed to be big as well, So I just planted in behind the potager, next to the edge of the lawn. I havent gotten a trellis started for it yet. Your grapes would make a fantastic fence. If it didnt stop the kids physically it sure would stop them by offering some tasty treats.I think the pots would look fantastic. The sunflowers prob wouldnt be a problem by the grapes, as long as placement didnt block the sun from the grapes. I see you decided to use the teepee idea. I think it will look fantastic. and the beans prob solve the bee problem somewhat. And i think your just teasing everyone with all these fantastic ideas and NOT one pic! shame on you,lol Tammy