Whether you love grapes and want to make them an integral part of your daily diet, “juice” them for smoothies or can them as jelly, reasons exist outside of the culinary realm that motivate people to grow grapevines, which the Missouri Botanical Garden lists as a high-maintenance plant.
With its bright summer leaves, gracefully winding branches and sweet, abundant fruit, a grapevine can provide unparalleled visual interest to a yard. It can also provide screening and shade to a sunny area (like a patio), and last for 30 years or more.
No grapevine care routine is complete without training the vine to grow correctly. The vine must be trained to grow upward, so it will need a vertical support like a trellis as well as a sturdy horizontal companion, such as a pergola or arbor.
Best grown in deep, loamy, humus-rich, medium moisture, well-drained soils in full sun. Performs well in gravelly loams. Tolerates a wide range of soil conditions, including average garden soils, but must have good drainage.
