Growing Your Own Grapevine in Your Garden

I love eating grapes and enjoying a nice glass of wine, but somehow I haven’t thought about growing a grapevine in our garden. How about you?

Now it’s the perfect time to start growing your grapevine, as they should be planted between late winter and early spring. They are ideal for filling an empty space, covering gaps on fences and walls.

Before planting a grapevine, you should visit a reputable garden centre that can help you choose a high quality plant, according to your needs. For your grapevine to flourish, it is essential to check specific guidance on how to grow grapevines, select a suitable location and prepare the soil.

The first step is to decide the purpose of your grapevine. Perhaps you are after grapes to be eaten or would like to try making wine, or simply to enjoy their shade and autumnal colours.

Table Grapes:

Table grapes, such as Buckland Sweetwater, Foster’s Seedling, Muscat of Alexandria and Schiava Grossa, are usually grown in a greenhouse or planted outdoors. They have a lower sugar content, so they are not suitable for the fermentation process in wine making. Table grapes are best enjoyed fresh, eaten immediately after picking. They can also be stored in the fridge for up to two weeks.

If you want a dependable grape that will flourish year-on-year, Lakemont is white and seedless, and can be grown indoors or outdoors. For flavour, you might prefer Ortega, named after a Spanish poet and philosopher. If you prefer a crop of red grapes, the hardy and seedless ‘Flame’ might be exactly what you’re looking for. A darker, almost black, grape called Triomphe d’Alsace is commonly grown in the UK, as is Muscat of Alexandria; an ancient vine and one of the oldest unmodified grapes left growing.

 Wine Grapes:

Wine grapes can be divided in white wine grapes, such as Chardonnay and Seyval Blanc, and red wine grapes, such as Pinot Noir and Regent. Unfortunately, reds might not yield well enough to make a gorgeous red. Instead, turn your sights to whites or sparkling. Again, Lakemont comes up as a good choice here but Seyval Blanc will also make a nice white. Madeleine Angevine and Reichensteiner are known for yielding award-winning wines in the UK climate.

It will take a while to start making your own wine. In the meanwhile, you could taste different wines by the grape and pick your favourite. Yapp Brothers, specialist independent wine merchants, provide a category on wine in which you can browse wines by grape. It should give you any idea of your favourite grape for wine making, matching the aroma and body to your taste and preference.

I am a fan of Chenin Blanc, what is your favourite grape/ wine? 

This post has been written in collaboration with Yapp Brothers.