| |
| |
|
Landscaping & Gardening Information |
|
|
|
Are My Grapes Ready to Harvest?
This is the time of the year that I keep hearing the question "When do I harvest my grapes?" Or sometimes the question is phrased "Are my grapes ripe yet?" And then there's the "Are they ready yet?" Yes, it's that time of the year when grapes are turning color and homeowners are thinking about when their grapes will be harvested. But many homeowners think that when the color turns, the grapes are ready to eat. They pick a few colored berries and pop them in their mouths only to find that there is very little flavor and a puckering feeling hits their pallets. Just because the color has turned on your grapes, it doesn't mean they're ripe. Generally speaking, grapes need one to three weeks after turning color to be considered ripe for harvest. But this time frame is dependent upon many factors including the variety, what the grapes are to be used for, and environmental conditions like the weather. The grape variety has a lot to do with how quickly the grapes will ripen. Varieties are classified as early, mid-season, and late depending on how many days it takes for the grapes to go from full bloom of the flowers to harvest ripeness (Usually compared to the Concord variety). It should be obvious that early varieties will ripen fast and be picked much earlier than late varieties. If you grow a variety that is considered late in an area with a short growing season of less than 170 days, the grapes will never get totally ripe. What you are going to use the grapes for goes hand-in-hand with the variety. Each variety has been bred for specific uses. Some are table grapes. These are used for eating. There are jam and juice grapes. And then there are wine grapes. Each are harvested by sugar content and acidity. Table grapes don't need as much sugar as wine grapes to be considered ripe. They usually reach between 16 and 18 percent sugar before they are ready to harvest. For the homeowner with grapes in the backyard or garden this is hard to measure. But since you are going to eat them, you only need to taste the grapes to determine if they are ready. The flavor components are as important as the sugar level of the grapes. When they get to the point where you think they taste good, then pick them. Be sure to taste more than one berry to determine this though. Not all grape berries are ripe at the same time. Berries in different parts of the cluster ripen at slightly different times. Clusters don't all ripen at the same time either. Clusters in the sunshine ripen quicker than those that are shaded. Clusters towards the base of the shoot ripen earlier than those towards the tip of the shoot. Wine grapes need more sugar to produce a higher alcohol content when fermented. Grape growers like wine grapes to reach 20 - 24 percent sugar ideally. Here again, this is variety dependent. Acidity is also important when considering the ripeness of wine grapes. Too high acidity will make the wine taste acidic and bitter and too low will make the wine flat. If you are growing grapes to make wine, you might want to invest in an instrument called a refractometer to measure the sugar content of your grapes. This tool makes it easy to find out how much sugar is in one or more berries. The juice of the berries is squeezed onto the refractometer plate, the plate is closed, and then by holding the instrument towards the light you can look into the eyepiece and see what the sugar reading is. A less expensive means is to use a hygrometer. You need at least 50 berries to determine the sugar content by this method though. Hygrometers are more accurate than a refractometer and that's the trade-off. The hygrometer is floated in the grape juice obtained by squeezing the berries and the sugar content is read off the scale in the neck of the hygrometer. Acidity can be measured by the titration method. But this is more in the realm of the chemist than the hobby grape grower. Because the pH of the juice is related to the acidity, it is more convenient for the small grower to use a portable "pH pen". A pH of between 3.00 and 3.55 generally indicates that the acidity of the grapes is in the for making wine. This also will depend on the variety. The seeds of the grape berry are also an indication of ripeness. If the seeds are green or light tan, the grapes are usually not ripe. Ripe grapes have brown, mature seeds. Along with this, the ease with which the berries can be pulled off the cluster also can indicate degrees of ripeness. Ripe grape berries can be pulled from the cluster with little resistance. Birds, raccoons, squirrels, and other wildlife that like to eat grapes can also be an indicator that your grapes are ripening and ready for harvest. These pests will harvest and eat your grapes as soon as they are ripe. Of course, you don't want to allow them to eat your grapes before you have a chance to harvest them. Bird netting and fences are needed to keep these pests at bay and allow only you to have the pleasure of your grape crop. There are many fine books on growing grapes. If you want more information on how to grow grapes in your backyard or garden you can find my selection of suggested books at: http://www.ristcanyonvineyards.com/grape_growing_books.html More information on growing grapes (especially under marginal conditions where grapes are not usually found growing), can be found at Jim's website. Just visit: http://www.ristcanyonvineyards.com
MORE RESOURCES:
landscaping gardening - Google News |
|
|
|
RELATED ARTICLES
Preparing Successful Seedlings Growing your own seedlings is very gratifying and far more economic than purchasing them. It also gives you far greater control over your existing growing conditions. Ten Considerations Before You Buy A Bird House When you decide to buy one bird house or more -- be aware that there are many designs being sold that are unsuitable for the birds. These houses may not attract any birds or the types of birds you wish, or they may actually be harmful. Hydroponics Gardening - An Introduction To Hydroponics Gardening For Beginners The Basics of Hydroponics Gardening.What is hydroponics gardening?Derived from the Latin Hydro, meaning water and Geoponics, meaning the study of agriculture, hydroponics is the science of growing plants using a solution of suitable nutrients instead of soil. Poly Tarps: More Than Meets The Eye To many people, "tarp" conjures an image of a crumpled canvas in the corner of the garage, or maybe that shiny blue plastic sheet in the hardware store.But tarps are the beneficiary of some of the best technology in textile and chemical treatments. Growing Tomatoes Organically Tomato Seeds Vs. Tomato Seedlings?Whether you start your own tomato seeds or buy tomato seedlings, growing them organically will produce healthier plants and better tasting tomatoes. Popular Adirondack Chairs - Everything You Need To Know Adirondack chairs were invented during the early 1900's by a vacationer who was looking for ways to furnish his summer home. By utilizing materials found around his Westport, NY, vacation home, Thomas Lee crafted a unique chair that caught the attention of a local carpenter and would eventually gain widespread popularity. Organic or Chemical Feeding of Plants - Whats Best A fundamental question in vegetable gardening is - what is the proper use of organic and/or chemical materials? Let's determine the truth of the matter, with four basic principles and a few brief examples from Dr. Jacob R. Tuberous Begonias If you appreciate plants that have no hesitation in boldly stating their presence with huge, almost artificially perfect flowers, then tuberous begonias are for you. While some may find them rather too overstated, downright brazen even, if you like colour, and plenty of it, with subtlety an option rather than compulsory, then look no further. Choosing Pond Plants A pond without plants is like cake without icing. Pond plants fight algae, give fish a hiding place against predators, and beautify our own little slice of paradise to plunk down in at the end of a tiring day. Indoor Gardening Tips for Jerry Seinfeld "I have no plants in my house. They won't live for me. Vegetable Garden Layout The size of your yard will determine your final vegetable garden layout. What can be fun is the planning of the garden and the decisions surrounding the kind of garden you want. Themes of Shade A Shade Garden can be created in any of several different types of shade. It can be in the mottled shade that comes from a broad leaf tree to the deep dark woods mentioned in Robert Frost's "Stopping by A Woods on A Snowy Evening". Water Ponds and Wildlife - How To Attract More Animals to Your Backyard Wildlife require water just as humans do. Water is essential for life. Grow Organic Vegetables There are more reasons than ever why anybody with access to a few square feet of the outdoors should grow their own organic vegetables.You may be shocked at how much of the produce at your local supermarket has been genetically modified. Why Should You Create A Butterfly Garden? Have you noticed you do not see as many butterflies as you once did? It is sad that we do not see as many butterflies as we might like. You can change that by planting a butterfly garden. Landscape Wallpaper Landscape wallpaper can be a great addition to your computer's desktop. Since most of us always have our PCs running, it is refreshing to see a beautiful masterpiece on the display when the computer is not in use. Organic Gardening "Organic gardening is not just the avoidance of chemicals, in the larger view, it is organic living using nature's laws." I read this quote by an unknown person sometime ago and realized that my parents and others like them were organic gardeners long before the current resurrection of these principles. Slugging It Out In The Trenches In an effort to introduce a shaft of sunlight into a particularly gloomy conversation, I recently asked a gardening acquaintance of mine to explain the difference between a slug and a snail.For the next twelve minutes and seven seconds, this horticultural monomaniac held forth on the most minute and inconsequential differences between gastropod molluscs with rudimentary or no shells and gastropod molluscs with well developed spiral or whorled shells. Patio Swings Spruce Up Your Outdoor Space with Comfort and Style Are you looking for a way to spruce up your patio while providing additional seating at the same time? Are you tired and bored of the same old stationary patio seating that can be purchased in most stores? If so, maybe you should consider furnishing your patio with a unique patio swing.In addition to creating additional seating, patio swings provide a place of relaxation and meditation that will be appreciated by the whole family and guests as well. Companion Planting If you look closely at the natural landscape, you'll never see a large area populated by a single species. Why then would it make sense to plant a single crop in a field or in a section of your garden? It doesn't.
|
| Article List | Index | Site Map |
|
All logos, trademarks and articles on this site are property and copyright of their respective owner(s).
The comments are property of their posters, all the rest is Copyright © 2006 CanadaSEEK.com - All Rights Reserved. |
