Methods for storing grape cuttings in winter and germination in spring

Cuttings are an effective and quick way to propagate grapes. Each part of the stem, separated from the vine, under favorable conditions, produces its own rooted seedling. At the same time, the varietal characteristics and beneficial qualities of the mother plant are completely preserved.

How to properly harvest grape cuttings in the fall

The period of harvesting lignified cuttings (chubuks) begins with autumn leaf fall and continues until the first frost, until the bushes cover. The overwintered vine weakens and is often damaged by frost. Therefore, the survival rate of cuttings harvested in autumn is higher than those harvested in spring.

Selection

Tall, middle-aged, high-yielding bushes are used for cuttings. Harvesting is done from well-ripened shoots during autumn preliminary pruning.

Advice. If a cracking sound is heard when lightly pressing on the internode, it means the shoot has matured.

You can't prepare chibouks:

• from plants damaged by insects or diseases;
• from the vine, where shedding of flowers and strong “peas” of berries were observed;
• from fattening shoots with a large core and loose wood;
• from shoots with elongated internodes.

Shoots suitable for cuttings are located on the fruit shoot or on replacement knots. Cuttings are taken from the lower or middle part of the shoot, where carbohydrate accumulation occurs to a greater extent.

Signs of a well-ripened shoot suitable for harvesting chibouks:

1. The bright color of the bast, characteristic of the variety.
2. Brown coloration at the places where leaves are attached.
3. Stem diameter – 7-12 mm.
4. The ratio of the core diameter to the total diameter of the shank is less than 50%.
5. High content of carbohydrates, which are involved in the formation of auxins (growth hormones).

At home, the degree of ripening is determined by starch test – the cut is immersed for 1-1.5 minutes in an iodine solution (1%). The more intensely the cut is colored, the higher the degree of sugar accumulation - the shoot is ready for cutting.

Important! Planting material cannot be harvested from pre-cut vines, which begin to wither - after three days it loses 5% of moisture, after five days - 10%.

Slice

The chubuk is cut with a sharp knife or razor under the lower eye. The location of the upper oblique cut is 1.5-2 cm above the eye. The direction of the bevel is the side opposite to the eye.

Chibouks “with a crutch” take root well – a piece of two-year-old vine at the base. A powerful root system is built up by cuttings from two-year-old wood with a one-year-old knot in the upper part.

Chubuki are freed from antennae, stepsons and immature areas.

Disinfection

Chubuki treated with drugs that protect against fungal and bacterial diseases.

Treat with 2% iron or copper sulfate, soaking them for 30 minutes.

If cuttings are harvested in a dry year, they are soaked in a solution of quinosol:

• at a water temperature above 15ºC – soak for 2 hours;
• at a water temperature of 10ºC – for 3 hours;
• at a water temperature of 5ºC – for 5 hours.

Chubuki are dried in the shade And sent for storage.

Formaldehyde treatment:

1. 200 ml of 40% formalin is dissolved in 10 liters of water.
2. Then the bunches of cuttings are dipped in the solution.

The treated chibouks are placed in the shade, covered with film and left for 12 hours.. Then ventilate for 3 hours and send for storage.

Interesting things on the site:

When and how to replant grapes in the fall

How and when to open grapes after wintering

How to prepare cuttings for storage

Stored on the day of cutting – in the open air, chibouks lose 2% moisture every day. They cannot be stored next to fruits - ethylene released by ripening fruits suppresses the development of buds, callus (wound tissue), and roots. The cuttings are arranged in bunches of 50-100 pieces.

Optimal conditions

The best storage conditions are temperature 0…+4ºC, relative air humidity – 75-80%.

Mistakes to Avoid

During storage, the main thing is to minimize the loss of plastic substances, moisture and prevent damage from fungal diseases.

Storing at the optimal temperature speeds up the process of callus and root formation inhibits shoot growth.

Increasing the storage temperature to 10ºC leads to increased respiration of the cuttings, dehydration and excessive consumption of sugars. The supply of nutrients will only last for 3.5 months. Such chibouks lose their ability to take root.

The degree of rooting depends on the varietal or hybrid characteristics. In a warm and humid environment, Moldovan grapes have a good survival rate of 70-80%: Kesha, Kesha-1, Arcadia, Glory of Moldova, Crystal, Kishmish Zaporozhye, Kishmish 342, Augustin, Pleven Eurostandard, Codryanka, Moldova.

Storage methods

Bunches of cuttings are buried in the cellar in slightly damp sand or covered with sawdust.

They dig a trench taking into account the length of the pipes and add 25-30 cm to the free space above them. The walls and bottom are moistened with water. A 3-4 cm layer of sand is poured onto the bottom and the bundles are installed vertically. The cuttings are covered with a layer of sand 5 cm high on top. Then they are covered with earth to the edge of the hole.With the onset of frost, a mound of earth 30-40 cm high is poured over the trench. During the winter, the pit is constantly covered with snow. A groove is dug along the edge of the trench to drain water.

Bulgarian storage method:

1. Chubuki prepare two more eyes than needed.
2. In the basement they are installed vertically, immersing the lower ends in water or wet sand.
3. Before planting, remove the lower part and the dried upper part with one eye.

Bunches are stacked in the refrigerator and wrapped on all sides in plastic film. Periodically remove the film for ventilation.

Carbon dioxide accumulates under the film, which partially preserves harmful microflora and inhibits the consumption of carbohydrates for respiration.

When is it time to sprout

20 days before planting, the chibouks are removed from storage and the sections are updated – the lower one is made under the node perpendicular to the axis of the handle, the upper one is 2 cm above the eye, obliquely in the direction opposite to the eye.

Furrowing the bottom of the shank will allow the roots to hatch faster. Longitudinal damage to the bark is caused by running one or two internodes along the teeth of a garden saw. If the stalk is full size, then the lower end with two eyes is furrowed; if it is two-eye, the lower third is furrowed.

How to do it right

Cuttings with updated cuts are soaked - immersed two-thirds of the length in water at room temperature for 1-6 days. After a day, check the moisture content of the chibouks - make a fresh cut in the upper part with a sharp knife. If it is wet, then stop soaking; if not, continue for another three days. Then they check again. If the cut is dry, change the water and continue soaking for another three days.

In large nurseries, after soaking, the cuttings are planted in special greenhousesto start the process of formation of root primordia before buds open. This is achieved by cooling the upper part of the segments and heating the lower part. If the cuttings are planted without staking, the buds will bloom before the roots form. Such specimens may dry out in insufficiently moist soil.

At home, kilching is replaced by stratification:

1. Sprout in a box equal in height to the length of the cutting.
2. Steamed earth or sawdust is poured onto the bottom in a layer of 1-2 cm. The bundles are installed vertically.
3. The bases are sprinkled with earth to a depth of 5-7 cm, covered with wet sawdust to the top, leaving one upper eye open.
4. The box is installed in a room with a temperature of +20...+25°C for 14-20 days.

In apartment conditions they are stratified into long plastic bags with the top edges loosely tied. The packages are placed on a cabinet for 16-20 days at a temperature of +22...+25°C, in daylight. The package is opened 3-4 times for ventilation. If the surface of the cutting dries noticeably, it is slightly moistened.

At the lower ends of the cuttings a gray-white influx (callus) with dotted tubercles - root primordia. Roots often grow from 2 to 7 cm long. Green shoots 2-5 cm long appear from the upper two buds.

Root regrowth is accelerated when treated with growth stimulants within 12-16 hours:

• heteroauxin – 1-2 tablets per 1 liter of water;
• bee honey – 1 tsp. for 1 liter of water;
• hyperauxin – 1-2 tablets per 1 liter of water.

The solution temperature should not exceed 17°C ambient air, and during treatment with stimulants – no higher than +22…+23°C.

Double spraying with gibberellin at a concentration of 25 mg/l increases shoot growth by 15-17%.

Read also:

How and what to properly fertilize grapes in the fall

Why do you need to prune grapes in the fall and how to do it?

Germination methods

Under favorable conditions - temperature, humidity, the presence of stimulants and nutrients, the process of regeneration of cuttings begins. Healing tissue (callus) is formed, then roots.

According to Radchevsky

Pre-treated cuttings are placed in a jar, at the bottom of which a layer of cotton wool or foam is laid. The top of the cuttings is waxed to protect it from drying out. Water is poured into the jar so that the top of the cotton wool or foam plastic is covered by 2 cm. The neck of the jar is covered with film, holes are made and pipes are inserted. The temperature below is maintained at +23...+25°C, at the top – as low as possible.

Roots form at the water-air interface, “heels” lightly touch the water. The advantage of the method is that the cuttings do not rot without changing the water.

According to Pusenko

The lower eye is cut from the cutting and several cuts are made along the bast on the lower part. – this technique stimulates root formation. A piece of fabric is moistened with water and the chibouks are placed on it in a row so that the ends are in the middle of the fabric.

The second half of the canvas is covered with cuttings, closed at the edges and rolled up tube design. Then the cuttings packed in fabric are wrapped in plastic wrap and stored in a warm place until rooting. Periodically open for inspection and moisten if necessary.

In filler

Wet porous materials are used as filler - a layer of sand, expanded clay chips, old sawdust, from which the resinous smell has disappeared. The filler is poured into a container, moistened and pipes are installed on it.

Also grown in containers in substrate, which should be at least 0.5 liters.Plastic bottles or paper milk or juice bags are used for containers.

The filler consists of sand, sawdust and peattaken equally. Add a little loose soil. It is better to replace sand with expanded clay screenings, perlite or vermiculite. The moisture content of the filler is determined by squeezing it in a fist - single drops should be released from the substrate. The bottom of the boxes is pierced and a handful of crushed stone is poured in to avoid stagnation of water. Before planting, the substrate is steamed in a water bath and cooled to room temperature.

What to do with germinated cuttings

Chubuki, which have entered the initial stage of vegetation and have formed roots, are planted in any containers made of cardboard or film up to 30 cm high, 8-10 cm in diameter in an apartment or winter greenhouse. Homemade vessels are installed in small boxes 15-20 cm high with 3-5 mm slots or holes in the bottom. The bottom of the box is lined with one layer of soft paper.

The cylinders are filled with soil mixture in a layer of 4-5 cm, compact it slightly, carefully introduce a grape cutting or seedling to the soil level, cover it with the same mixture and water it with warm water.

Soil composition:

• turf or forest land;
• humus or peat;
• coarse sand.

The components are taken in equal parts.

Seedlings are fed with bird droppings and microelements, provide sufficient lighting.

Water seedlings in cardboard or film containers as needed – 1 time every 7-10 days in January, February and March and 1 time every 5-7 days in April and May until landing at a permanent place.

On one plant grown from a cutting, 1-2 shoots are left, excess ones are removed as they appear.

Growing grapes from cuttings at home

Two-eyed chibouks are taken out of the refrigerator and cut into pieces 20 cm long. The upper oblique cut is made 2 cm above the upper eye, the lower straight cut is 0.5 cm below the eye. Completely immerse in water and soak for two days.

The next step is kilching on the battery using one of the methods:

1. The lower part of the shoot is wrapped in damp moss and placed in a bag.
2. Pre-scalded sawdust is poured into a plastic glass and a chibouk is placed there. Place a plastic bag on top to prevent moisture from evaporating.

The cuttings are placed on the battery at a temperature of 30ºC. The upper part should be kept cool. In 2-3 weeks, root primordia and leaves are formed. Cuttings can be planted in a container.

Plants are planted in open ground when the threat of return frosts has passed.. Choose a bright place, protected from the prevailing winds. For the first two weeks, the seedlings are shaded from the hot sun.

Conclusion

Germination of cuttings increases the growing season by 2-3 months. Seedlings with a long growth spurt are planted in open ground - they have a viable root system and 8-12 leaves. The bushes develop faster, fruiting occurs without delay, and the grapes reach full winter hardiness in time.