How to construct a "tree of life" with muscadine grape vines

Hi John, found you on Youtube.  building a labyrinth and in the center of this labyrinth I want to create a dual effect.   

• A. Tree of Life
• B. DNA ladder symbolism.

I have installed a 24" x 8' terracotta pipe stood vertically.  consideration is to plant two muscadine plants spiraling up the turret to symbolize  DNA structure and have them create foliage and fruit at the top. 

Is this reasonable? what plant do you recommend that has a nice thick woody trunk leading up the turret?  At the turret base for the plants how much depth and width should i allow for soil?  Suggestions on how to trellis for strength and effect?  can you supply the plants at what cost plz?  location is Pilot Mountain NC.  27040

Also,  at the top of turret will be copper transitional piece to shoulder a 24" copper genesa crystal.  the turret is filled with quartz crystals inviting earth energy to flow and then broadcast by the genesa.


Thanks for asking. Your project sounds intriguing. Most muscadines should be cold hardy in your area, but you should check the hardiness of the varieties you consider. Some are hardier than others.

I don't sell muscadine vines any longer, but can recommend some growers to you.

Muscadines are shallow rooted, so soil depth shouldn't be much of an issue. But the roots can spread a long way. So long as you don't have pavement around them, they should be okay.

The trellis at top should be very sturdy. Muscadines live a long time. I imagine something like a steel umbrella. The steel post could fit inside the terra cotta turret. A round steel plate could be welded on top of the post with c-channel steel posts (or something similar) radiating outward. A steel ring, fitting around the outside of the turret, would provide support for braces (as I said, it would look like a big umbrella). This structure would be fabricated (find a welder/fabricator in your area) elsewhere and installed over the
turret.

The radiating arms (perhaps you have a number in mind) needn't be too long. Maybe 5' or 6' long.

Individual grape vine arms could be trained to the radiating arms. They could be fastened with plastic Ag-Lock fasteners.

The vine arms would be permanent. Lateral vines would be pruned annually to keep the tree neat and productive.

Grape vines would be easy to work with. Akebia quinata produces colorful flowers and edible fruit, but grows very quickly and may get away from you. Hardy kiwi (Actinidia arguta) should work, but seems to me that Vitis has more ancient lore and cultural interest.

You could also espalier fruit trees like apple or pear around the turret, but they would take longer and be more difficult to train.


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A question about training muscadine vines to a single wire trellis.

I want to do a forty foot single wire trellis, planting a Carlos on one end and a Tara on the other.  Will this work and what should I do when they meet in the middle?  This is my first experience in planting scuppernong/muscadines.  Am I headed in the right direction?

 A single muscadine vine can produce 50 lbs of grapes. With two vines, you could have 100 lbs of grapes on the trellis. It should be able to bear the load. You could construct an H-brace on each end. This article on fence bracing from University of Wisconsin Extension shows how it's done.

But that may be more than is necessary for 2 vines. I suggest you install 3 steel fence posts 20' apart. That would give you a 40' row. String MAX-TEN 200 High-Tensile Trellis Wire between the posts. The wire should be 4' from the ground. Tighten the wire with a Hayes-style wire tightener. Install a duck-bill anchor at each end and attach to the end fence posts. That should give you enough support. You can buy Hi-Ten wire, tighteners and duck-bill anchors from Kencove.com if you can't find them locally.

Plant your vines 10' from each end. Train your vines up to the single wire trellis. Snip the growing tip (terminal bud) from the top of each vine. Select 2 arms per vine and train them to the wire growing in opposite directions.

Each arm should grow 10' long. When the Carlos and Tara arms meet, snip out the growing tips at the ends of the arms. Don't allow the Carlos and Tara arms to grow over each other.

You are on the right track.

A question about training young muscadine vines to a pergola

I have just become the coordinator for our school garden.  At the entrance is a pergola with a muscadine vine planted at each post.  They have been growing for 3-4 years.  At this point they are bushy, sprawling outward from posts, 3-4 feet tall, leafed out with tiny grapes already.  I am unsure if they have every been pruned.  It seems to me that they are too bushy at the entrance somewhat blocking the pathway.  I have never grown muscadines myself though I have picked them at grower's places.  I do not know how to proceed to help train them up the post and hopefully thin them at bottom? Move them?  Any advice or direction to instructions that would pertain to this particular type of situation would be helpful.

I'm assuming you want to grow them up the post.

At each post, sort through the tangle and select the longest vine. That will be your main trunk. Prune off all other vines from the main trunk. Tie the main trunk to the post with some 1" wide plastic tape. Train the main trunk to grow up the post by tying it as it grows upward. If the tape gets tight, cut it off and tie again loosely. It's not too late to prune. You'll probably lose some of the small grapes, but that's okay because the vine is too young to bear anyway. If allowed to bear, it will slow the upward growth process.

During the summer, new sprouts may grow along the trunk. Prune them off. You can simply rub them off if they are soft and young enough.

John Marshall
goGardenNow.com
goGardenNow.blogspot.com

Will my muscadine vines bleed to death?

I've pruned my muscadine grape vines, and water is dripping from the cuts. I was told they might bleed to death. Is that possible?

The water that's dripping is sap. The sap is running because it's spring, the weather is warming, and your vines are coming out of dormancy. There is no danger that your vines will "bleed" to death.

There is a possibility that orange slime mold might grow in the sap. You can read about that in another blog post. The slime mold won't harm your plants.

John J Marshall
goGardenNow.com

John also blogs at goGardenNow.blogspot.com.

Slime mold on muscadine vines.

"Hello, I live in the northeast corner of Alabama and in early Feb., I pruned our muscadine vines.  Two of the vines are still "bleeding" and forming an orange colored build-up.  Should I do something?  If so, what?  Thank you for your time,  D.L."

It's slime mold, a species of Fusarium. It grows in the sap. Looks bad but is harmless. When the sap stops running, the mold will dry and flake off.

That reminds me of another question I'm often asked about vines "bleeding". I'll deal with it in a separate post.

John J Marshall
goGardenNow.com

John also blogs at goGardenNow.blogspot.com.

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Pruning a fig tree to reduce its height.

I received the following inquiry a few weeks ago.

Mr. John, (We) have a very large fig tree. It's at least 15 feet tall, if not taller. When is the best time to prune it? ...I would like to prune it so I can reach all of the figs! ALL OF THEM. Just kidding. ...I heard it was good to prune them, but I won't if it isn't!  -C.K., Athens, GA.

Dear C.K., I'm assuming that your fig tree is vigorous and in good health. Since you want to prune your fig to reduce the height of the tree, you need to do it so it won't grow back to its present height too quickly. Timing is important. Spring pruning tends to stimulate new, rapid growth; summer pruning does not, so prune in late summer.

Prune in stages. Heavy pruning all at once tends to stimulate new, rapid growth; selective pruning in stages does not, so prune selectively in stages.

Heavy pruning will reduce your crop a lot. You don't want that. Selective pruning in stages will reduce your crop a little, so do that.

Here's how:

Resign yourself to the fact that this will be a two-year process. Resign yourself to the fact that you will lose some figs.

Prune from late June to mid-July.

Be sure your tools are sharp. Make clean cuts. Avoid making ragged wounds.

Determine how tall you want your fig tree to be. Select about 1/2 of the tallest limbs, and cut them back about 2 feet below the ultimate height you desire.

Always cut back to a point just above a node, if you can identify it. A "node" is a point on a limb or branch where growth emerges. If you cut midway between nodes, or just below a node, you'll leave a stub that will die and rot. The rotting tissue can invade healthy tissue; you don't want that.

While you're at it, remove any dead, diseased or damaged limbs by cutting them back to the nearest node or joint.

Next year, follow the same procedure, cutting back the remaining portion that's too tall.

Avoid fertilizing. It will only stimulate your fig tree to return to its original height.