Throughout the world, it's interesting to see folks from all backgrounds flocking to grape growing for an ideal food they can raise in their own backyard.
Whether for fun, self-sufficiency, or as a pre-cursor to making their own wine, people recognize grapes as a no-cholesterol nutritional food that has carbohydrates, protein and the "healthy" fats.
The good news is that grapes are relatively easy to grow with some solid grape growing information.
Grape growing does require some attention, but you don't need a degree in horticulture to learn to prune.
The very first thing you want to do is take the time to identify the perfect location for your vineyard.
There are several guidelines that will help you choose the ideal location on your property.
Grapes enjoy much sun.
Pick a spot that will get plenty of sunlight, even in spring and fall as the position of the sun changes.
Second, keep in mind that it's really important for grapes to have a soil that drains well.
They need decent amounts of water, but they do not do well in standing water or heavily saturated soils.
Here's one of the most useful bits of grape growing information: if you have a sunny spot with a slight slope to it, this is ideal.
Moreover, a slope facing south is nice because it can actually help warm the soil as it faces the sun more directly.
This may be more important up north, but take every advantage you can muster.
Finally, keep in mind that you'll need reasonably easy access to your vines, so allow room for them to grow and keep in mind you'll need to get to them for pruning, pest control, and weed control.
And if you hit a particularly dry spell, you might even need to drag a hose out and give them some water.
So just be sure you can get to the vines, or else you'll grow frustrated in your grape growing endeavors and may be tempted to neglect their care.
After picking the prime location, you'll do yourself a great favor by next preparing the soil and then creating a solid structure to hold your vines.
Grape growing can be unbelievably productive, particularly when they properly cared for.
In fact, the vines are capable of producing more grapes than they can even reasonably accommodate.
Ultimately, the weight of the grapes can pull on the vines and cause them to collapse, which is why you'll find that grapes in the wild will naturally find poles, fences, or something else to grow on for additional support.
You'll want to do something similar to what the vines would expect in the wild, so consider creating a trellis for them.
When looking into erecting a trellis for your grape vines, think of it as a long term investment.
Grape growing can take nearly 3 years before they really begin to produce, so you'll be letting them grow for several years before you see a crop.
You'd hate to skimp on the trellis and have your grapes grow for a couple of years and then collapse your entire arrangement! Once your grape operation is underway, you may find yourself tempted to ease on into winemaking.
It's very common.
If you like trivia, here's some startling grape growing information: more than 70% of grapes grown worldwide are used for wine.
The balance is used for table grapes, and a small amount are turned into dried fruit or non-alcoholic juices.
It's true that other fruits and vegetables can be used to make wine, or even moonshine, but the fact remains that grapes contain a high degree of sugars that ferment perfectly to create the remarkable flavors that characterize the finest wines.
This is not to mention that the peels contain pigments that yield appealing colors as well.