Bomber: Good advice from Murky. You might think about building a stronger grape arbor when the ground thaws. There will always be high winds at this time of year, and when your vines are heavier and more extensive the problems could be worse. Wooden posts sunk 18 inches into the ground are better than a couple of light steel posts that are driven in. Don Yellman, Great Falls, VA

I know there are pros and cons and it was nice and strong, had not been staked while at the farm. ==>>> well of course it wasnt.. it had an INTACT root system to hold it up ... i like to tell peeps.. that the root system underground.. is at least as big.. if not bigger than the tree above.. to help them conceptualize just what was cut off at transplant ... what does your have to hold it up??? HOPE???? stake it properly.. until it can grow enough roots.. to .. get this.. hold itself up ... and frankly.. we can only guess about all that ... you said: We got about 5" of rain in a 12 hr period yep.. the soil disturbed at planting.. liquified.. complicated by the fact that it leafed out.. and created what was basically a sailboat sail in a puddle ... and i dont see how you are going to stake ONLY the rootball with that sized sail ... looking forward.. start enjoying those stakes.. and leave them there for about 2 years.. until hopefully it will grow enough roots to maintain vertical .. ask if you need info on PROPER MULCHING.. and PROPER WATERING ... what you dont mention.. is your native soil type.. and what may or may not have been added to the planting hole ... i would disregard any worry about breaking a few branches.. or what little root growth there may have been ... and i presume it was warrantied .. and i would politely put the seller on notice.. especially if he installed it ... because apparently his stake theory was wrong ... and next time.. think about not going bigger than a one inch caliper.. they transplant easier.. cope better.. and are less stressed all things considered.. and in a given 5 years span.. would probably outgrow the 2 inch ... and this can be used as a bargaining chip for a smaller replacement.. should the seller balk for some reason. ... ken

> Posted by dandy_line > If yours never freeze down then they are continually growing > and are going to fall over eventually. Mine is young. See my first posting in this thread, dated Jan 13. > Isn't a flower bud on March 1st a little strange? Has been producing them continuously since late Dec. > Maybe it's Aster Yellows virus. No, but the article (thank you for it) raises in my mind the possibility of insects as cause; i.e. that the failure location on any collapsed stem is the spot where bitten by some insect.

I had literal clouds of them. I couldn't go outside, even in the pool without them attacking me. They were driving me insane and destroying the blooms on several different plants. I've had some small amount of success spraying the garden in the evenings every third day with a weak seaweed emulsion spray. I read someplace they don't like seaweed and thought it worth a try. It took a week before I saw any improvement. It's not a miracle, but it does seem to have lowered the numbers of the vermin. My blooms are looking better and I can go outside now w/o doing the thrip dance (twitch, swat, shimmy, repeat).