Seedling Chewed Down.

[Omikse]

Hello, I am new to this board and came here via google. I have a few questions but I can get to them over time. The main reason I came here is that I am trying to grow grapevines and in doing so I am trying several methods this year to achieve my goal. One method was to cut a vine and stick it in water but to my surprise, After I cut it, I noticed that where it was touching the ground it had started to root and that a sprout had started right at the knot it started to root at. So I took what I had cut and put it in some dirt to see what would happen if I let it go. Well most of the vine died and so did the sprout, so I thought. After a few weeks when I thought the sprout was browning/dying out, it started to open up and leaf out. I was so happy. Well bad news is that when I went out today, slugs had chew it down at dirt level. I got a root riot and some cloneX to see if I can save it but I do not have high hope since it just started recovering from another trama. So my question is this: Do any of you think that this might survive or do you think it may be too late?

[Greenleaves]

Hi, it would help if you told us your location as that will have bearing on any advice given

[skeggijon]

Welcome to the vine Omikse.
I'm rubbish with my own Grapevine, so can't help I'm afraid, but I'm sure help will be along soon.

[Omikse]

Sorry I left out some details. I live in the Pacific Northwest

[hamamelis]

Hi, I'm afraid most of the posters on this board are in the UK, so the climate here is a little different for most of us!

First, just a warning; grapevines are normally grown grafted, as the varieties that taste good often aren't very strong or vigorous, and the tough ol' vines don't tend to produce fruit worth eating. You may be able to get a tasty grapevine to grow on its own roots, but it'll likely be tricky and the resulting plant might be a bit delicate.

Also, I don't know if you've grown many plants from cuttings before, but it's really really important that there isn't much leaf when there isn't much, or any, root, otherwise the cutting will not be able to replace the water lost through the leaves via transpiration, so will die before it's had time to get established. This is quite likely what happened to your cutting when most died back.

Personally I've never managed to get a grape to grow from a cutting, despite trying almost every time I prune my established vine (works great with all my currant bushes!). Sometimes it looks like it's working, and a few leaves start growing and looking great, then they go brown and drop off, and when I pull it up I discover there were never any roots growing...
I just gave up and bought another plant in the end.

Sorry this might not really be useful advice, but I know it is tricky. I hope you have better luck than me!

[Omikse]

Thank You for replying hamamelis. Like you I am trying a few methods, which include, taking a cutting and sticking it into the ground, Taking a cutting and sticking it in water, Air Layering a couple of vines from the main plant, and of course seeds from the plant we took cuttings from.

So to give a little background, a few years ago my wife and I noticed a wild grapevine growing around the corner from our home. We live on a some what country road so we thought this was a good find. The fruit it produces when fully ripe is just the right mix of sweet and sour according to my wife since I do not like grapes much. After a little research I have narrowed the stain to either concord or Niagara grapes.

I have not had any luck when it comes to cloning plants but I do keep trying. I do have 2 stem/cuttings that I took a little over a month ago, placed 1 in dirt and 1 in water. The one in water was a woody stem and had a small bud that had not leafed out yet. The one I put in dirt was more of a new stem just starting this year. I cut all the leaves and buds off and put some CloneX on it and stuck it in dirt. 3 Weeks later the one in water started to leaf out. I can see the bottom of the stem and as of yet it has not rooted. Just last week, the one in dirt started to push out a brand new bud. I can not tell if it is rooting or not unless I pull it out and I am not willing to do so.

The one I am trying to save was a new stem (that got chewed in half by a slug) from a vine that had started rooting because it was touching the ground that I cut and replanted hoping the roots would take on their own. I think they started to when the new stem started to open up and leaf out. But the slugs chewed the stem in half at the ground level. So I got a root riot and soaked it in CloneX and replanted it hoping it will re-root.

[SusieG]

Welcome Omikse!
I can't help with advice, and I'm sorry to say that it must be a universal cry - ******* slugs!!!!!!!!!

Hope you get your grapevine to root !