Grape
Vitis vinifera
Difficulty: Medium ☀️ Full sun Small garden Medium garden Large garden
Info
Grapes grow well in Britain on a sunny wall, over a pergola, or in a greenhouse. Modern disease-resistant varieties bred for cool climates, such as Solaris, Regent and Phoenix, produce excellent dessert or wine grapes outdoors.
Vines are decorative, covering walls with lovely foliage and autumn colour, and plants are long-lived. Greenhouse varieties such as Black Hamburg give sweeter dessert grapes.
Types and varieties
Grapes are grown outdoors or under glass, and for the table or for wine.
Outdoor dessert grapes
Harvest September to October
Hardy, disease-resistant varieties that ripen on a sunny wall or pergola without any heat.
Boskoop GloryMarsLakemont
Outdoor wine grapes
Harvest late September to October
Early-ripening varieties for juice or home winemaking, hardy enough for most of southern Britain.
SolarisRegentPhoenix
Greenhouse grapes
Harvest August to October
The finest dessert flavour, but they need a heated or sunny greenhouse and careful pruning.
Black HamburgMuscat of AlexandriaBuckland Sweetwater
How to plant
Plant a pot-grown vine between November and March in a sunny, sheltered, south-facing position with fertile, well-drained soil. Dig in compost and, on acid soils, add some lime. Space plants 1.2–2 m apart.
Provide a sturdy support: horizontal wires 30 cm apart on a wall or fence, or a pergola. Cut the plant to 2–3 buds after planting. Mulch with compost.
Top tips
- Plant on a sunny wall.
- Choose disease-resistant varieties.
- Install wires first.
- Cut back after planting.
How to grow
Train a main stem (rod) up the support, and in winter prune side shoots (spurs) back to 2 buds. In summer, tie in new shoots and pinch out the tips beyond 2 leaves past the last flower cluster. Thin fruit bunches to improve grape size.
Water in dry spells in the first years, then plants mostly look after themselves. Mildew and botrytis can be a problem in wet summers; keep air flowing by removing leaves around the fruit. Prune in winter before the sap rises, in December to January.
Top tips
- Prune in midwinter.
- Pinch out tips in summer.
- Thin bunches.
- Remove leaves for air flow.
Watch out for
Powdery mildewBotrytisWasps and birdsFrost damage to spring shoots
How to harvest
Taste grapes before picking; they should be sweet and fully coloured, with brown pips. Outdoor grapes ripen in September to October. Cut whole bunches with scissors, and pick on a dry day.
Net the fruit against birds and wasps. Leave late grapes on the vine as long as possible, until frost threatens.
Wasps are a particular nuisance in September, so bag the ripening bunches in muslin or fine netting from late August. If birds are a problem, cover the entire vine with netting. Unripe bunches that fail to sweeten can still be used for verjuice.
Top tips
- Taste before cutting.
- Cut whole bunches.
- Net against birds and wasps.
- Pick before hard frost.
Usage and storage
Eat dessert grapes fresh, serve with cheese, or make juice, jelly and jam. Wine grapes can be pressed and fermented; a modest vine yields several bottles. Grape leaves can be pickled for dolmades.
Grapes keep for 1–2 weeks in the fridge. Freeze whole grapes as a snack. Juice can be pasteurised and bottled.
Dessert grapes are excellent baked with roast chicken or pork, in focaccia, or in a sticky chutney. To make juice, crush the grapes in a bowl, simmer gently for 10 minutes and strain through muslin. Grape leaves are traditional for stuffing with rice and herbs.
Top tips
- Freeze whole grapes.
- Pickle the leaves.
- Make juice.
- Serve with cheese.
Timings are typical for the UK and vary with region, frost dates and variety. See the planting calendar for every crop at a glance.