Let’s face it. There are a lot of people out there who know way more than The ChapDaddy about choosing a trellis from the dozen or so options available.
Geneva Double Curtain? Sounds like something from IKEA, but sure, why not.
Umbrella Kniffen? If you have to Google part of the title, it’s probably not a good choice.
Ah yes, and the Modified Keuka High Renewal Training Trellis…perhaps we should just move on.
If you’re looking to swirl wine in fancy stemmed glasses, commenting on things like “streaks” and “hints of blackberry”, then perhaps choosing a trellis in your backyard vineyard will include those options.
But if you’re more of a Georgian (the country, not the state) in your approach to winemaking and wine consumption, then perhaps you’re OK with the 80% solution when choosing a trellis and are more interested in the people with whom you share both the process and product, both between the rows and at the dinner table. (And maybe the thought of chugging wine from a ram’s horn sounds more exciting to begin with.)
For the Average Joe with two kids and a full time job, choosing a trellis for a backyard vineyard should be about simplicity and efficiency.
And when choosing a trellis with the simplicity and efficiency you want (without taking too much away from the final product), you should consider a few things.
First, how much time do you have?
If you have a family, a full time job, a side hustle, two energetic dogs, or any combination of the above, you probably won’t be spending hours and hours in your backyard vineyard each week, which many trellis configurations will require year after year due to training, maintenance, and positioning requirements associated with the trellis.
Second, how much help do you have?
If you’ll have lots of friends and family available to consistently walk the rows with you, or when you’re away, you can consider some more complex set-ups when choosing a trellis. If this is a one-man show (or if said friends/family will only show up for construction, planting, and harvest day, which is highly likely), you’ll want to continue reading below.
Third, what is your start-up budget?
Sturdy, high-tension wire – i.e. the type required for vineyards – isn’t cheap, and certain trellis styles require a lot of wire (multiple levels on both sides of the posts).
With that said, if you have ample time, lots of help, and plenty of cash, by all means ignore this post and look into some of the more complex options out there when choosing a trellis for your backyard vineyard.
But, if like me, you answered “not a lot”, “not much”, and “not much” to the three questions above, you’ll want to consider the less labor-intensive options for your trellis selection.
Which leads us to a recommendation:
Top Wire Cordon (Cordon-Spur Pruning)
Top Wire Cordon-Spur is one of the simplest trellis techniques for a first-time vintner. It is simple for several reasons.
First, the trellis construction requires very little work. Once your posts are established, you simply hang a lower wire at roughly 30in from the ground, and a top wire at roughly 6ft from the ground. That’s it. (More on trellis construction in a future post.)
Second, once you train the vines up to the top wire and establish two cordons, your maintenance work is minimal (aside from the standard maintenance required in any vineyard with any type of trellis). You let the vine do its thing, draping its shoots outwards and downwards from the top wire with minimal intervention.
Third, the pruning is fairly straightforward. You don’t need to read professional journals from UC-Davis explaining the latest research on selecting fruitful canes. You’ll simply need to identify 1-year old shoots around February/March each year and cut them back to 2- or 3-bud “spurs”. It’s more like a haircut than anything (more on that in a later post).
Take a look at the below illustrations to see what we mean – full credit to Double-A Vineyards, our go-to supplier, for developing these great illustrations.
With your posts established, your nursery vines planted, and your top and bottom wires hung (ideally in that order!), spring arrives along with the year’s buds. You’ll allow two or three (from above the graft) to grow into shoots, ultimately choosing the strongest (and cutting back the rest) to train up to the top wire, letting it run as far as you can along the wire in one direction.
(Another technique is to cut the shoot as soon as it is 4-6 inches above the top wire, allowing you to select and train two lateral shoots running in either direction along the top wire, and giving you your two cordons. This is only recommended for highly vigorous vines, but more on this process in a later post.)
Ideally, the above image is your situation in early spring after your first growing season. You now have a straight, sturdy trunk, one of two primary cordons running along the top wire, and fresh buds to choose from for your second trunk and cordon. You now repeat the process – select two or three buds from above the graft to develop shoots, select the strongest shoot, and train it up to the top wire, eventually running it in the opposite direction (and giving you your second cordon).
After Year Two, you now have two cordons. Both cordons are now ready to produce grapes – the right side will be pruned to 2-3 bud spurs approximately every 4-6 inches along the cordon (or roughly spaced by the width of your hand), whereas the left side will only have one bud to work with in those intervals. More on that later!
After Year Three, you now begin the rhythm of pruning last year’s growth back to 2- or 3-bud spurs on both arms of the cordon. The cycle of vineyard life is now in full spring with late winter pruning, summer maintenance, fall harvest, and winter winemaking.
This is the top-wire cordon technique, simplified. There are obviously lots of details in between, such as planting techniques, Year One priorities, summer maintenance, dealing with pests and fungus, as well as harvesting, crushing, and ultimately making some wine.
However, all of those things occur no matter what trellis you choose.
Bottom line – if you have limited time, resources, and funding, the top wire cordon trellis, and cordon-spur pruning technique, is the way to go.