How to Prune and Harvest Grapes

Prune Grapevines

• 1

  Prune grapevines in late winter to early spring, before new growth starts. Dormant vines take pruning easier than growing vines, and early pruning encourages healthier, lusher growth.

• 2

  Cut away new shoots that grow from the trunks between the wires of your trellis system. Leave four canes on each trellis tier for growing. Cut two canes per wire tier to two buds each, as your renewal spurs. Cut the remaining two canes on each tier to 12 buds each as your growing canes.

• 3

  Train the long canes to the left and right on the wire tiers. Tie them to the wires with cord or twine to support them as they grow.

Harvest Grapes

• 4

  Watch for fruit ripening in a cultivar's given season. Grapes turn from green to red, blue or white as they ripen. Don't pick them at this color change, though; this is just the first sign of maturation.

• 5

  Watch for a change in seed color in green and white grapes. Seeds change from green to brown at ripening. Watch for the natural white coating on the grapes; a brighter, denser coating is a sign of ripening.

• 6

  Squeeze the grapes to test for ripeness; grapes should depress slightly, and then spring back.

• 7

  Taste-test grapes for flavor and sweetness. Harvest the grapes when they reach ideal sweetness. Grapes don't continue to ripen once harvested, so harvesting too early results in a ruined crop.

• 8

  Cut the grapes from their vines with sharp scissors or clippers. Clip the stem at least 1 inch above the top of the cluster to keep from damaging the grapes.