How to Grow Grape Vines from Cuttings

More people are growing their own grapes and using them to make jelly, jam, or homemade wine. Grapes bursting with flavor are healthy to eat, and full of antioxidants. If you want to increase the number of grape vines you have or if you just want a few grape vines for your landscape you can easily root cuttings. Grape vines are sold at most garden supply stores, catalogues, or online but why not propagate them on your own. The grapes will be the same as the parent vine and it will save you money.

Find the Temporary Planting Location

Find a location to start the grape vines. This will be a temporary garden site until the cuttings root. You will want to prepare the garden site by tilling or digging the soil with a garden fork. The best time to do this is in the fall before the ground freezes. If you live in an area where it does freeze, place a tarp or other piece of plastic inside the trench. Fill buckets with the reserved soil for easier planting.

Dig a V-shaped trench. The depth depends on the length of your cuttings. You will need it deep enough so that the bottom three buds are below the soil line. Only the top bud needs to be above the soil line.

Pour 2 inches of sand into the bottom of the trench. Level the sand to keep it even throughout. The sand will help ensure that there is adequate drainage for the cuttings otherwise they may rot in the ground.

Taking the Cuttings

Examine the grape-vine or vines that you want to take a cutting from. If the grape-vine is on someone else’s property, ask permission before you go in to take the cutting. If you do that, most homeowners won’t mind and you may even end up with other cuttings as well.

There are two times that are best in order to take your cuttings. In the months of December or January, or when you are pruning the grape vines. Find a healthy branch that has at least four to five nodes. While gathering the cuttings, be very careful to not damage the top bud of the cane. They cannot be injured in any way. It is the top bud that protects the new wood. Cut the bottom of the cane so it is at an angle. The angled end goes into the ground first. If you cut the grapevine straight across, you can still tell the difference between the top and bottom of the cane. Look just below the buds. There you should find a crescent-shaped scar. This is where the leaf connected to the cutting. If this area is located below the bud, then you have it facing the right directions.

Prepare the Cuttings

Before you plant the grape-vine cuttings, dip the angled end in water. Shake the grape cane to remove the excess water. Dip the dampened end in rooting hormone. Tap the cane to remove any excess rooting hormone.

The cutting is now ready to plant in the trench. Push the angled end into the sand, while the length of the cutting should rest against the wall of the trench. Leave 4 inches of space between each cane.

When all the canes are lying vertically in the trench, cover them with the reserved soil. Gently firm the soil around the grape-vine canes so you don’t damage the buds. If weather permits and it is not in the middle of winter where you are, give the cuttings some water. You’ll only want to moisten the soil, not have it be soggy wet or the cuttings will rot.

Continue to grow the cuttings in this location for one full year. By that time, your grape-vine should have roots formed. At the end of the year, you can safely dig up the cuttings and replant them in their permanent location.

Resources:

Desert Tropicals: Grape Cuttings

University of Minnesota Extension: Growing Grapes

Royal Horticultural Society: Grapes Outdoor Grape Cultivation

Gardening From the Ground Up: Growing Grape Vines from Cuttings


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