FAQ: Muscadine varieties incorrectly labeled and few fruit produced

I planted 4 muscadine vines Feb.2012,they were 2 years old, one black jumbo,black loomis, one black southland and one bronze magnolia scuppernong. In 2013 each vine had a few fruit to mature but they all were bronze, none were black. I pruned them this year and I saw lots of very small fruit. They slowly started drying up. I only harvested three fruit. What could be my Problem? Please help! 

Well, it's obvious that you did not get what you thought you bought, otherwise you would have had red grapes on the Loomis and black on the Jumbo and Southland. If the ones labeled Loomis, Jumbo and Southland were not actually Loomis, Jumbo and Southland, it's possible the Magnolia wasn't a Magnolia. In any case, there's no telling what varieties you have.

Here are my thoughts:

You're not going to get many fruit from very young vines, even if you have a good mix of female and self-fertile varieties.

Are you sure the "very small fruit" you saw drying up were actually fruit and not flowers? Sometimes the flowers are mistaken for very small fruit. If flowers dried and fell, it's possible they were never pollinated. Since you don't know what you have, it's possible you don't have a pollinator (self-fertile variety) in the whole bunch. If you have no pollinator, yet had a few fruit, the pollination could have come from wild muscadine vines out in the woods or even from a distant neighbor's property.

If what dried and fell were, indeed, small fruits, they may have fallen off due to dry conditions, fungus encouraged by wet conditions, or magnesium deficiency in the soil. If you observed  yellowing between the  veins of the leaves, you probably have magnesium deficiency. Take a soil sample to your local Cooperative Extension office for testing. You can correct mag deficiency by applying epsom salt at approx. 4 oz. per vine broadcast evenly at approx. 4 to 5 sq. foot area.

Find your local Cooperative Extension office using this interactive map: http://www.csrees.usda.gov/Extension/

I hope this helps.

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goGardenNow.com

Another question about poor muscadine grape yields

There is an old Muscadine vine at Mama's that grows the sweetest grapes I've ever tasted. The vine is strung east/west if that makes a difference. What I'm asking about is an oak tree at the west end of the vine. In the last 3 years when the vine buds out in the spring and fruit is forming it looks like we are going to have a bumper crop but most of the grapes will shed long before they are of any size. In your opinion does the oak need to be cut down or is there some additive that will stop the shedding? I have been told boron will take care of the problem.

Various factors can contribute to your problem. 

If grapes are forming but falling off, poor pollination isn't your problem.

Insufficient boron can be a problem. It's best to determine whether there's a deficiency by having leaf samples tested. Sandy soils with high pH are most likely to be deficient. You can take leaf and soil samples to your nearest Cooperative Extension Service office to test for boron. This link can help you find yours. http://www.csrees.usda.gov/Extension/

Insufficient moisture can be a problem. Oaks tend to be heavy drinkers, so the oak could contribute to that. If the oak is casting a lot of shade on the grapes, that can be a problem, too.

Powdery mildew can cause flowers and small grapes to drop. It is most active when the temperature is between 60 and 80 degrees F. It can occur in sun or shade, but shade encourages it. Powdery mildew looks like a gray, dusty powder on the flowers/fruit. Fungicides can control it, but if you can eliminate contributing factors, do so.

Some insects (beetles and bugs) will feed on small grapes and flowers. Check in spring to see if they're present.

You mentioned the East/West orientation of your trellis. When planting in full sun, I prefer North/South orientation so that the vines can get sun on both sides of the trellis as the day progresses. Regardless of the orientation, full sun is always best.

John Marshall

goGardenNow.com

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