I have a small vineyard in the Diamond Mountain district of Napa. It has roughly 100 very old zinfandel vines. I've been told that they are the oldest in the county and may be as old as 80 to 100 years. Unfortunately, before we acquired the property its was very poorly maintained. These old vines are in multiple sections with many dead vines or empty spaces. They produce a very low yield of very high quality grapes. They are head trained and essentially dry-farmed. I really want to retain these beautiful old vines but replant the remainder of the property. I would like to explore replacing the dead vines and filling the emptly spaces with the vines scattered throughout the property such that all the old vines are in one section and more tightly spaced than they are presently. I have two questions: (1) Can these vines be transplanted and how? (2) Since we are about to go into bud-break I think it wise to wait until they go dormant again. What is the best way to build up their health this growing season so that they stand the best chance of survival when transplanted. I don't care about the grape production this year. Should I fertilize and water more regularly than I might to produce grapes? Is there a more appropriate pruning method to restore health than what might normally be done to produce grapes? I would greatly appreciate any help from anyone with experience or expertise on this issue.
The best option for the vines would be to cull any that are diseased and leave the rest to grow where they are, interplanting with new vines, however that may not fit with your plans. Do you plan to change to another variety or replant with zinfandel? If you wish to change, it would probably be best for ease of management to transplant the zinfandel to a block of their own though in transplanting you will lose most of the root systems they have been developing over their lives. Yes, it would be best to transplant next year if you have the time. Determine the size of root ball you will be able to manage (bigger is always better) and root prune the vines 2-4 inches inside that perimeter ASAP. This will promote root branching now within the future root ball volume and give your transplants their best start next year. Dry farming is fine for established vines, but these ones should not be allowed to dry out this year after root pruning. I prefer to transplant as close as possible but before budbreak so the transplant will start it's growth cycle as soon as possible after being moved. Remove the fruit this and next year to push the growth effort into the roots. If you have access to and can fit into the vineyard with a machine mounted tree spade, that would be the easiest and best way to do the root prune and the move next year, otherwise a tractor mounted forklift rigged with a canvas sling will work well. Do the transplants one at a time and have a water supply and crew organized so each hole is watered and each plant is backfilled and watered while the next one is being lifted out. It is critical that the soil stays moist but not waterlogged for the first year, watering deeply (frequency depends on your soil type). Fertilizer should not be required this or next year; have the soil analyzed before (or if) you wish to fertilize in the second year. Ralph
Robert- with the age of those vines it's probably a better idea not to move them. At that age it is very difficult to transplant them. I would contact the staff at UC Davis and get their expertise on the subject. Those are some pretty old vines.
