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Grapes in pots

I have not tried this myself, but the RHS book Fruit by Harry Baker (which
is a very good practical guide to fruit growing in temperate climates) has
a few paragraphs on the subject which start "Grape vines can be
successfully grown in pots in a small greenhouse or on a patio where a
large greenhouse is not available". What follows is a paraphrase of his
suggestions, modified by my own modest experience of growing grapes in a
more orthodox way.

Start a one-yr-old rooted cutting in a 7 inch pot; in the vine's 2nd season
move it in Nov into a 12-15 inch pot. The 2nd summer prune it so that it is
growing one strong shoot tied to a cane, and pinch out the shoot when it's
about 6ft tall. In the 2nd winter prune the main stem and its side shoots
down to ripe (brown) wood. Make some sort of frame so that you can
subsequently tie the growth in to form a sort of umbrella, with the main
stem about three or four feet high and the lateral shoots trained out on to
horizontal supports. Tie the main stem in to this to make a ring with a
diameter of about 30 inches, and stop the shoot when the ring is complete.
So you get a circle of foliage (and you hope fruit one day) above a clean
central stem - the shaft of the umbrella. Prune the vine rigorously to
develop fruiting spurs each about a foot apart. Gradually allow it to start
fruiting, a couple of bunches in the first fruiting year, more later. Never
allow more than one  bunch per foot of rod.

You'll have to repot every winter, with fresh compost. If the vine looks
really starved you may have to go up a size to a bigger pot.

Alisdair Aird (Sussex, England)
Alisdair@compuserve.com
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