You didn't state what the grapes were--muscadine, concord type, white/amber/ thin skins etc... I went to a 'pruning clinic' at the local 'pick your own' vineyard and the County AG agent used a saw on the oldest, heaviest of the vines, He cut them to the ground, The next spring, he chose two of the sprouts to use as the main trunk,, by the third yr he had it on the wire that was 6' tall. Pruning is always a little scary to me but after watching this-- I decided I could do it.. Good luck..

. . . and another question about training the plant: I train one main stem to develop, going upwards. I prune it just above a bud, so that it splits into 2 arms, and train them sideways, about 3 ft above the ground. The main stem keep going up to the second wire (about 6 ft above the ground), or trellis arm, and then I prune it again to develop 2 more side shoots, which are again trained sideways. So it now looks like: ---[--- ....[ ---[--- ....[ ....[ (ground) [ = main stem -- = side stems (and ignore the ... they were just to get the spacing right) Looks kind of like a backwards F and a right shaped F right next to each other? Is this right? Then each spring, before it grows, I prune the side arms back but I never prune the main trunk? Doesn't the main trunk get old? I don't know why I'm having so much trouble picturing this, but please correct me if I'm wrong.

Yes, we all need more trees. I saw something in the news that SL County wants to see 1 million trees planted in the next 10 years. I don't know how they plan to promote that, but it's a great goal. Anyway, I think that's funny how you planted in the neighbor's yard. Reminds me of guerrilla gardening (http://www.guerrillagardening.org) where people sneak out at night and plant nice things to beautify neglected spaces. Anyway, you DEFINITELY should be gardening, Sharla! Don't be daunted just because it can be complicated. It's not always complicated, and you'll learn some things along the way as you do it. It's so rewarding to grow stuff and see your accomplishments as they make your yard a nicer place. As for the red maple, just watch it and see. It may be fine, but if the leaves get pale or yellow, it is getting iron chlorosis from our alkaline soil. It's not that we don't have enough iron, but it can't be used very well by some plants when they're in alkaline soils. These are usually trees or shrubs that came from back East or some other climate that has rich, acid, forest soils. Anyway, if that happens, post back here, and we can help you deal with the sick tree.

Just get straight glyphosate - it doesn't have to be RoundUp specifically and there are less expensive brands of this herbicide on the market (Ferti-lome sells a product called Killzall that is less than half the price of the equivalent concentration and size of RoundUp). If you do go with the RoundUp, just select the Weed and Grass Killer - no need for any other additions to the mix. As I noted previously, you may very well need several applications and it is suggested to allow at least 2 weeks after the last treatment before reseeding. And it is too early to reseed - too hot and too dry for most northern, cool season grasses to germinate well. Generally, the ideal time for fall seeding is early fall - September to early October, depending on your specific climate. And any cool season turf grass blend recommended for your area is fine. Most independent garden centers - not the box stores - will have blends that are appropriate for your area.