Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Canopy Management
O
ver the past two decades, advance- As a result, a wide range of plant densities
ments in vineyard design, trellis and training/trellis systems are routinely
and training systems, and canopy employed in California wine grape produc-
management practices have dramatically tion. The trellises used range from single to
improved wine grape productivity and fruit divided curtain systems and employ both
quality in California. Prior to this period, horizontal and vertical canopy division.
a standard vineyard design and trellis sys- Due to both cost and durability, metal has
tem was used throughout the state. Little replaced wood as the material of preference
attention was paid to site-specific factors for trellis construction.
influencing vine vigor such as climate, grow- The major wine grape trellis systems cur-
ing region, soil type, and rootstock. Now rently used in California are outlined in the
significant effort is made to match vineyard following table. A primary consideration
design and trellis system to the site-specific when selecting the proper trellis system is
factors that influence potential vine growth. anticipated vine vigor or canopy size. Highly
54"
32"
Bilateral cordon training and Spacing Harvest; pre-pruning; $2,500 per acre Most common trellis system for
spur pruning most common. between vines shoot positioning; for materials, trellis, wine grape production in coastal
Unilateral cordon training and is 3 to 8 feet. leaf removal; hedging and installation regions. Allows reduced between-
spur pruning used when in- Spacing row spacing and increasing vine-
row vine spacing is 5 feet or between rows yard design efficiency; requires
less. Head training and cane is between shoot positioning.
pruning used for some culti- 7 and 8 feet.
vars in cool regions.
TRELLIS SELECTION 17
In addition to proper trellis selection, canopy formed in all vineyards trellised to the lyre, verti-
management practices such as basal leaf removal, cal-shoot-positioned, Scott Henry, Smart-Henry,
shoot positioning, and hedging are an integral and Smart-Dyson systems. Some form of hedg-
part of high-quality wine grape production. Some ing or shoot trimming is necessary with most of
form of basal leaf removal is practiced in the these systems as well.
majority of coastal wine grape vineyards, as well Basal leaf removal consists of removing pri-
as in many vineyards in the northern and central mary leaves and lateral shoots that subtend the
San Joaquin Valley. Shoot positioning is per- four to six basal nodes on each primary shoot. In
15"
downward shoot
positioning wires
30"
(1 pair)
14"
Bilateral cordon training and Spacing Harvest; pre-pruning; $2,500 per acre Used in coastal regions when
spur pruning between vines leaf removal; hedging for materials, trellis, anticipated vine vigor is too high
is 6 to 8 feet. and installation. for VSP but narrow row spac-
Spacing ing is desirable. Requires that
between rows bilateral cordon–trained vines
is 7 to 8 feet. be alternated at two heights to
create upper and lower fruiting
zones. Lower fruiting zone often
becomes weak over time.
Head training and cane Spacing Harvest; leaf removal; $2,500 per acre Similar application as Smart-
pruning between vines hedging for materials, trellis, Dyson, except that cane prun-
is 6 to 8 feet. and installation. ing allows easier separation of
Spacing canopy. Used when cane pruning,
between rows VSP canopy configuration, and
is 7 to 8 feet. narrow-row spacing are desired
under moderate- to high-vigor
conditions.
TRELLIS SELECTION 19
removed when the average shoot length is 6 to vineyards where the row middle or area between
8 inches. Shoot thinning increases light reaching the fruiting zones becomes shaded following fruit
the basal buds in the canopy interior. However, set. The vine foliage is separated or positioned
under moderate- to high-vigor conditions the using movable wires. On vertically divided sys-
effects of this practice on canopy microclimate tems, shoot positioning is performed several
may be temporary due to compensating lateral times per year, typically near bloom and follow-
shoot growth. ing berry set. For horizontally divided systems,
In vertical-shoot-positioned (VSP) canopies, shoot positioning is normally performed once
shoot positioning maintains canopy form and per year near bloom.
foliage separation in narrow-row spacings. On Hedging or shoot trimming maintains canopy
horizontally divided canopies (GDC or Wye), shape, prevents shading, and facilitates culti-
shoot postioning maintains canopy separation. It vation and mechanization. The shoots of VSP
improves light penetration to the canopy interior, canopies are trimmed when the foliage begins to
particularly in vigorous, horizontally divided grow over the positioning wires at the top of the
42"
54"
cordon wire
58"
12"
12"
105° 11"
40"
32"
Quadrilateral training Spacing Pre-pruning; leaf $3,500 per acre Found primarily in the North
and spur pruning; distance between vines removal; hedging for materials, trellis, Coast in moderate- to high-vigor
between curtains is 3 to is 6 to 8 feet. and installation. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot
4 feet. Spacing vineyards. Not widely used due
between rows to high establishment and annual
is 10 to production costs.
12 feet.
TRELLIS SELECTION 21