Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
LAYING OUT THE VINEYARD
There are two main measurements for the vineyard. The first is the amount of space
between the vines in each row: typical spacing between plants is 4, 5, or 6 feet. The second
is the spacing between rows—usually 6, 7, or 8 feet. In fertile soils, rows and plants can be
spaced closer together; your vines will still be productive, but your vineyard will cost less
to install. If you can go to 5-foot plant spacing and 7-foot rows, do so. I believe a vineyard
with plants spaced at 5 or 6 feet and 8-foot rows is best if you have fertile soils and a vig-
orous rootstock such as 110R.
This means that there are different dimensions for any vineyard. The chart shows
some alternate spacing for an acre (208 by 208 feet), ¼ acre (approximately 100 by 100
feet), and
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16
acre (approximately 50 by 50 feet), and how many vines you will need to
order if using that spacing.
Some varieties are more productive than others, just as some rootstocks are more pro-
ductive than others. So if you are planting a variety known to be highly productive, you
might space the vines further apart (because you'll get more fruit per plant) or put it on a
rootstock that would temper its vigor. Each situation is going to be somewhat different de-
pending on soil and climate.
Again, rows can run east-west or north-south. If your land is sloping, vines lower
down the slope will be more subject to frost damage. Also, if your vineyard is on a hill with
a slope up to 30 percent and you want to use wheeled vehicles for maintenance, you should
make the rows run up and down the hill, not across it.
To lay out the vineyard, you can use stakes and string, spray paint, or lime to mark
the position of the rows. Begin with a base row, then mark each row off this base row. You
can use the 3-4-5 rule to make sure that the ends of each row are perpendicular to the base
row. Measure this carefully so that your rows are correctly spaced and straight. For a large
vineyard, you can use a transit to determine exact measurements and align the rows.
The installation shown in our illustration is based on constructing a
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16
-acre vineyard
(approximately 50 by 50 feet), with vines spaced 5 feet apart and rows spaced 7 feet apart.
