Hi - my first post here, but have been reading all the forums quite extensively for a couple of months now - thank you to all those who help all us newbies out around here. So my question is this: I planted a himrod grape (bought at GardenWorks, Burnaby) about a month + ago on a south facing wall (under the eaves) in my backyard in Kits. This grape shows no signs of any new growth yet... should it have "woken" up by now? Thanks in advance for your help! Meghan
My Himrod grape has new shoots a few inches long already, but it is an old, established vine in Burnaby. Newly planted vines may take longer to start growing, depending on where they were grown. I understand that nurseries sometimes apply hormones that extend dormancy on some plants to prevent premature growth. I'm not sure that this is done with grape vines, but I suppose it's possible. Anyway, I wouldn't worry yet. It's been quite cool lately, and the grapes are not growing very actively. Your new vine is probably putting its energy into growing roots first.
I agree the ground is still cool and until it warms up a bit the vines will stay dormant. On new plants it does take a while for the plant to get established in its new home and roots find there way around. Everything in its own time, watch and learn.
Thank you for your responses... It has been cool, especially in the mornings, so I will not fret about it yet then!
STILL nothing happening with my himrod! Poor baby... I don't want to dig it up though in case the roots are still getting established... fret, fret, fret!
It's hard to be patient. I went thru this last month waiting for my kiwi (planted last fall) to do something (anything!), while a friend at work told me her's had already put out a foot of new growth. I was out scratching the bark every few days looking for green, but eventually it leafed out. I imagine mine was slower because it's new, small, etc... I feel for you! Try to be patient :)
Don't sweat it. I went thru the same thing last season with a new planting. I ended up digging it up and taking it back, only to have the nursery show me all the new root growth on it. They did give me another which had already started to leaf and this year it is going great. Patience.
Thanks all. I have added more permanent things to the garden this year (2 apples, cherry, tayberry, raspberry, etc, etc) and I guess I am a little intense about it all!! When I was buying everything, as well as doing my regular indoor seeding, the words crazy and obsessive were muttered under my husband's breath a few times!
Heard from a local gardener yesterday that her Parthenocissus (a grape relative) is also yet to leaf out.
Yep, my husband laughed at me this year. Apparently I've been a bit compulsive about food gardening our yard. I even bought a variegated orange and a Lisbon lemon for inside the house. It's incentive for my husband to get building a deck to drag these huge pots out onto for the summer weather. Call me crazy, but I think there's a genetic influence on gardening.
HA! So TRUE! I even bought a meyer lemon to test out... and unfortunately it's NOT doing at all well, and I thought I had followed the instructions to the t. Oh, well. Hopefully I can get it outside (all day) soon and it will bounce back! Speaking of building husbands... so far Michael has built me 8 new containers, a window box and a special three-tiered strawberry box... I have more on the list... at least he likes building things (he is a renovation/new home contractor by trade)!! BTW - just released hundred of ladybugs onto my roses - amazingly fun. I hope there are enough bugs around for them to eat!
