How to Manage Pests

First- and second-year pruning for grapes

Let the shoots grow out the first season, because shoots and leaves produce a strong root system for future vine development. Insert a 6-foot stake near the plant and train new growth to it by loosely tying it. Grapes can be pruned in the winter when the plants are dormant. If the first season's growth was vigorous, select a single shoot and train upright to the stake. If the first year's growth was weak, prune back the shoots to two-bud spurs and allow to grow out.

During the second dormant period, you'll begin training your vines. The goal is to establish a main trunk up the stake and establish the scaffold structure. The trunk should be headed back once it has reached the top trellis wire. As the new growth develops from the headed trunk, select two shoots that will develop into bilateral cordons for spur-pruned varieties. For cane-pruned varieties, select two to four shoots, which will become canes. Do not head them during the growing season. During the third dormant season, you'll prune by either the cane-pruned method or spur-pruned method.