Do you still doubt whether to plant virgin grapes in the garden? Cast aside all doubts and get down to business! There is no vine that is easier to grow and care for to decorate your site. With the help of maiden grapes, you can turn a barn into a fairy-tale palace, a pergola into a mysterious tent, and a chain-link fence into an impenetrable wall. We will tell you how this plant reproduces in open ground and help you choose a variety for planting. The article is illustrated with colorful photos.
Description of the plant: varieties and varieties
The botanical name is Parthenocissus, translated as “virgin ivy”, belongs to the grape family, has a second name - “maiden grape”.
Maiden grapes are often used to decorate the territory of a personal plot.
The genus Parthenocissus consists of 19 species. We grow two types of virgin grapes in open ground:
- Five-leafed (Parthenocissus guinguefolia);
- Tripointed (Parthenocissustricuspidata).
Virgin ivy
is a vine with five palmately compound leaves. The leaves are oval-shaped, pointed. For growth, a support is needed, to which the vine is attached using the tendrils present on the shoots. With normal development, shoots reach a length of more than 18 meters. Blooms in summer. The fruits are inedible. In autumn, green foliage turns red. Prefers to grow in sunny places. Very frost-resistant.
Tripointed maiden grape is a vine with three palmate leaves. At the ends of the shoots there are up to 10 tendrils, with which the plant is attached to the support. The tendrils have suction cups, so you are more likely to break the shoot than to tear it away from the support. Shoots grow up to 10 meters. Less frost-resistant than five-leafed.
Variety Viche
Varieties of virgin grapes:
- Henry is good for indoor breeding. Planted in fairly deep containers. Suitable for bonsai.
- Attached - grown as a houseplant.
- Enelmana - it has small leaves that sit tightly together. It grows very quickly.
- Hairy - leaves are pubescent below, like young shoots. Winters poorly.
- Viche is a very popular triogrape variety.
Botanical description
Many lovers consider this plant to be a wild grape, but this is not so: virgin grapes have nothing to do with edible types of grapes. It is a large deciduous, less often evergreen, vine, the old branches of which are covered with dense bark. The leaves of the plant are compound, palmate, sometimes three-lobed, located on long petioles. In spring and summer, the leaves of the maiden vine are dark green, and in the fall they acquire a bright purple hue. The climbing shoots of the vine, clinging to the support with branched tendrils, can reach a length of 15-20 m. Corymbose hanging inflorescences develop opposite the leaves or in their axils. The inflorescences consist of bisexual or staminate flowers with a greenish corolla. The fruits are inedible dark blue berries.
What is the attractiveness of girlish grapes for gardeners and designers? It is decorative throughout the season, provides a dense camouflage curtain, is not afraid of frost, grows on any soil, does not need a large feeding area, is resistant to diseases and pests, grows very quickly, does not require fertilizing, reproduces easily and perfectly protects any walls from dust, overheating, rain, wind, and also eliminates dampness near the foundation and even indoors.
The plant also has disadvantages: firstly, the grape shoots crawl under the roof and destroy it, and if they get into the gutter, they clog the drain. Secondly, the aggressive roots of the maiden vine spread for several meters around, causing disturbance to other plants, and can cause the destruction of the foundation. Thirdly, in the spring, virgin grapes take a very long time to wake up, and the sight of its bare, tangled shoots against the backdrop of a green garden does not inspire optimism.
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However, if you wish, you can come to terms with all these shortcomings, since the decorativeness and unpretentiousness of girlish grapes are beyond praise.
Planting a plant
Maiden grapes do not require particularly fertile soil and do not like dry and depleted soil; they tolerate slight soil salinity. It is undemanding to lighting. Feels good in the sun and shade. But still keep in mind that planting in the shade will affect the color of its foliage in the fall - it will remain green until frost and will not turn into a beautiful burgundy or yellow color, and the vine may not bloom and form picturesque clusters with dark berries.
The time of planting does not matter; the vine takes root equally well in spring and autumn. According to gardeners, all you have to do is plant and water, and then the grapes grow on their own - just be sure to trim off the excess growth.
Maiden grapes grow well without constant care
A week before planting in a permanent place, you need to prepare and cultivate the soil. Remove weeds and dig a planting hole measuring 50 x 60 cm. Mix the excavated soil with a bucket of compost and a bucket of sand. At the bottom of the pit you need to pour a liter jar of ash or 300-400 g of double superphosphate. Arrange drainage: place crushed stone, broken brick, expanded clay (whatever is at hand) at the bottom, and put planks or pieces of slate on top so that the drainage does not quickly become covered with earth. Add some of the excavated soil. Next, straighten the roots of the seedling and add the remaining soil. Form a watering hole and mulch. The distance between seedlings is recommended to be at least 1 m. After planting, be sure to water well.
If you plan to grow a perennial ground cover of virgin grapes over a large area, then the plants should be planted every 0.6 m, and 2-4 pieces should be planted in each hole.
Plan in advance the area for growing virgin grapes
While the vine is small, install a support or tie it to direct the plant in the desired direction. An adult plant requires serious support, so if the vine is planted in open ground for many years, then take care of this in advance.
Important. When planting virgin grapes, do not bury the root collar - it should be located at ground level.
Features of growing grapes
Wild ivy easily takes root at any time of the year, so young grape seedlings can be planted in both spring and autumn. The grape grows well in illuminated areas, but also feels comfortable in shady areas, although in such conditions the leaves form small and light-colored. It gets along well in close proximity to tall shrubs and trees. When planning grapes, you should take into account the fact that the shoots have enormous growth power. Growing rapidly, they can “climb” over the fence and begin to conquer the neighbor’s territory. The stems can entwine other plants and household items. At the same time, once on the ground, the branches quickly take root, which leads to the growth of the bush.
Fact! Over the course of a year, shoots grow 3-4 meters. Therefore, it is necessary to plan the area for growing grapes in advance.
The composition of the soil for wild grapes is not particularly important. This may be sandstone or loam, poor in fertilizers or heavy, over-acidified soil. But still, the vine grows better on light, fertile soil. Before planting seedlings, it is preferable to add compost or humus, ash, sand, and superphosphate to the soil. In such loose, lightweight soil, plants take root faster and begin to grow. The grapes are planted in deep holes, the bottom of which is covered with drainage. A powerful support is installed next to the seedling, to which the plant is tied immediately after planting. When vertical gardening, seedlings are placed one meter apart from each other. The distance to the wall is 60 centimeters. After planting, the seedlings are watered and then the ground is mulched.
Grape care
Maiden grapes do not require any special agrotechnical measures. All it needs for growth is regular watering, timely fertilizing and annual pruning.
The plant uses a lot of water to keep its thick green crown alive. However, it does not like overflow. During the summer, it is enough to water the vine by sprinkling 3-4 times. Up to 10 liters of water are poured under the root. If the summer turns out to be rainy, then the bush does not need to be watered at all.
Watering is combined with fertilizing. If the land was well fertilized in the year of planting, then the first application of fertilizers occurs only in the 2-3rd year. Otherwise, fertilizing is done already in the year the seedling is planted. To grow green mass, the plant requires a lot of nitrogen. It is introduced in the spring. You can limit yourself to organic matter or add urea and ammonium nitrate. 40-50 grams of nitrophoska are added to the soil. It is preferable to feed grapes with complex mineral fertilizer, using the drug Kemira Universal. In the fall, potassium fertilizer is applied to help the plant overwinter better. It is enough to sprinkle the area near the trunk with ash or use potassium magnesium.
Note! A powerful root system goes deep into the earth, extracting the necessary nutrients from its depths. Therefore, there is no need for additional or even more frequent fertilizing for virgin grapes.
To give a neat appearance, the vine must be subjected to formative pruning. This type of pruning begins to be used already in the first year of grape life. Young branches are fixed to a support, and then they are directed in the right directions. In early spring, after the snow melts, sanitary pruning is carried out, and damaged, frostbitten, old and extra branches, as well as those growing in the wrong direction, are removed. Pruning can be done every two years. In this case, first shorten the long shoots, and only then cut out all the neglected branches.
Advice! When removing unnecessary branches, make a cut above the bud, leaving no more than 5 millimeters above it. This will make the bush look neat.
Most varieties of virgin grapes are frost-resistant, so they do not need to be covered for the winter. It will be enough to sprinkle the base of the bush with spruce branches or straw. However, it is still recommended to cover a young, recently planted vine with a non-woven covering material, such as plastic film, during the cold period.
Reproduction
Maiden grapes can be propagated by cuttings, layering, and seeds. The easiest way to get a new varietal plant is to resort to cuttings. Cuttings can be planted in spring or fall. When planting in autumn, cuttings are prepared in spring or early summer. Small branches (20 centimeters long) are used as cuttings, on which there should be buds and leaves. Before planting, the cuttings are cleaned of tendrils, shoots and leaves. The chopped branches are placed in a container with water and wait for the roots to form. Then the cuttings are transplanted into a soil substrate consisting of sand and earth. By autumn, the rooted branches are planted in open ground. Each seedling is placed in a planting hole so that the root collar, after being covered with soil, is on the surface. The distance between future bushes should be at least 50 centimeters. Wild grapes grow well in any soil, but for better survival, it is rational to add organic matter and mineral fertilizers when digging, lighten heavy clay soil with peat and drainage, and add humus to sandy soil. Rooted seedlings are planted in September.
Maiden grapes can also be propagated by layering. To do this, in the spring, a long shallow ditch is dug next to the plant, where a two-year-old shoot is then placed and covered with earth on top. The end of the branch should remain above the ground. To prevent a buried branch from jumping out, it is pinned with metal staples. During the summer, roots form in the places where the buds were located. When this happens, the branch will need to be cut off from the mother plant and planted in another area.
The most unpopular method is seed propagation. This is due to the length of the process, since it will take several years to obtain an adult plant. Seeds selected in summer are planted the following spring. Before sowing, planting material must be stratified, that is, the seeds are kept in a moist sandy substrate for 1-1.5 months at a temperature of +5 degrees. Then the seeds are sown in a nursery, where they will sprout in 30-35 days.
Diseases and pests
In very rare cases, virgin grapes are affected by infections or harmful insects. Diseases such as spotted anthracnose or powdery mildew are alien to it, since the plant has extraordinary immunity. Among the pests, aphids can sometimes be seen on the leaves. When it appears, the plant is watered with a soap-water solution, and then all areas are sprayed with biological preparations Fitoverm or Fufanon.
Caring for virgin grapes
Maiden grape is a very unpretentious tree-like vine; in open ground conditions, caring for it is quite simple, you just need to regularly and promptly carry out sanitary pruning of the vines and water it in severe drought. Without pruning, this beautiful plant can turn into ugly thickets.
The most important thing is to formulate the culture in a timely manner
There is no need to cover the plant for the winter, since frost-resistant varieties predominate in our latitudes, but even if the vines freeze, there is nothing to worry about - new young shoots will emerge from the replacement buds. It is enough just to trim the lashes to healthy wood.
The first few years the liana actively increases its root mass; during this period it requires fertilizing with fertilizers twice during the growing season. You also need to tie up the young plant; in the future it will find support on its own, clinging with its tendrils and aerial roots to any roughness on the surface.
Strengthened virgin ivy will give an annual growth of several meters. To prevent the vine from entangling the entire area, let's figure out how to carry out the shaping.
Girlish grapes definitely need support
- Growing young shoots need to be guided along the support, thus forming the skeleton of the plant.
- Don’t be afraid to remove those shoots that don’t grow where you want them right away. This will not harm the vine.
- After the formation of the skeleton, only sanitary pruning is carried out in the spring and restraining pruning in the summer. All weak, damaged shoots are removed, as well as those that thicken the plant or give it a sloppy appearance.
Advice. When pruning shoots, leave no more than 5 mm above the bud, then you will save yourself from protruding stumps of lashes, which looks unsightly.
Wild grapes planting and care
The ease of caring for the plant makes it popular even in big cities; it is used to braid high-rise buildings, which also looks beautiful.
Important! Pruning is beneficial to the plant, but only in the summer.
Plant propagation
There are several ways to propagate virgin grapes in open ground; choose the one that suits you best.
Propagation of virgin grapes by layering
By layering. In the spring, select a lash with buds and dig it in several places to a depth of 5 cm, first pin it to the ground in these places with wire or a hairpin. The end of the whip is not buried. Water well. By autumn you will receive several ready-grown seedlings.
By cuttings. Cuttings are carried out in spring or autumn. Select a 3-4 year old vine the thickness of a pencil and cut into pieces with 4-5 green buds. Tear off all the leaves. Plant so that two buds remain on the surface. To make the cuttings take root faster, lightly scratch the part that you dig.
Advice. If the cutting is planted in a sunny place, then it needs to be shaded until the first shoot forms and watered regularly for good survival.
Maiden grape cuttings take root very easily
by seeds. This is a rather troublesome method. Ripe fruits must rot, after which the seeds must be carefully removed. In the spring, before planting, they need to be stratified for better germination. To do this, the seeds are first soaked for several hours in cold water, then placed in damp sand and refrigerated for a month.
Root suckers. This is perhaps the easiest way to propagate virgin ivy. Where the vine comes into contact with the soil, roots form and take root easily. You just need to plant them in a permanent place, without deepening the root collar.
Reviews
Michael
I really like wild grapes, as they decorate beautifully. But, however, this is a difficult plant, because it grows very quickly, and it needs to be trimmed very often, otherwise it will spread throughout the garden. If the hedge or wall you want to decorate is small, then it is better to plant a less aggressive plant. For example, some other grapes or liana-like shrubs, less tall. Wild grapes are capable of crushing everything - neighboring trees, roofs, drainpipes. Long, heavy vines have destructive power, as their suckers penetrate into various cracks, under tiles, and so on. Moreover, not every support can withstand the weight of 10-meter branches. Maiden grapes are more suitable for large-scale compositions, when you want a lot of greenery quickly and quickly. In small areas it is better to plant other plants.
Anastasia
These grapes have been growing at the dacha for about 20 years now. They have completely encircled the house with their long vines. Many people say that the vine spoils the roof and other elements of the building, but our house is brick, and I assure you that the brick does not deteriorate. I also know that powerful vines reliably protect walls from dampness and drafts. Unpretentious, fast-growing and never getting sick, grapes are not much of a hassle. All that is needed is to trim the branches in time.
Diseases and pests
Diseases and pests avoid this vine, so you shouldn’t expect surprises from this side, which means you won’t have any unnecessary troubles.
Most likely, there will be no need to protect virgin grapes from pests
It very rarely happens that aphids settle on young shoots; they do not cause much harm. It is enough to wash it off with water from a hose or spray it with a solution of laundry soap with the addition of alcohol. If the folk remedy does not help, use the biological product “Fitoverm” or the insecticide “Fufanon” according to the instructions.
Description
Maiden grape or ivy is a vine that grows up to 30 m. Breeders first saw it in 1622, and began to use it to decorate parks and gardens of aristocrats. Vertical hedges made from maiden or wild grapes look great.
It gets along well in the middle latitudes of Russia. It does not require special care, so it is often used even in educational institutions to decorate classrooms or industries.
Maiden grapes in combination with other plants
Other vines go well with maiden grapes in landscape design. Clematis, according to gardeners, grows even better in such a neighborhood, because virgin ivy protects the clematis roots and the base of the stems from the sun.
It is good to combine virgin grapes with hops; if the green leaves of regular hops seem too boring, plant an Aureus plant with yellow-green leaves. The green decorative leaves of the maiden grape will favorably highlight the flowers of the climbing rose and become a support for it.
Maiden grapes decorating the gazebo
Against the background of a fence braided with lianas, conifers look good: spruce, juniper and thuja; if you add turf and barberry to this composition, then the conifers will visually lose their heaviness. When the girlish grapes shed their leaves, the coniferous group will emerge as a soloist to the foreground.
Care
Experienced specialists clearly know that a luxurious crimson color will appear only on the vine on the south side. If you choose poorly lit places, the luxurious foliage will always be green.
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For pink-purple colors, the ivy must absorb a lot of sun, then in the fall it will delight you with luxurious purple caps of leaves.
In the west or east the leaves will be larger. With the onset of cold weather, the ivy will shed its leaves.
Maiden grapes in landscape design
Maiden grapes are a surprisingly flexible plant with strong and flexible shoots. In landscape design, virgin grapes are most often used for vertical landscaping of the walls of various buildings and structures: gazebos, fences, walls of outbuildings, retaining walls. Combine with other plants.
Virgin ivy reproduces easily and grows quickly: in 2-3 years it can completely drape a 2-story building. At the same time, planting occupies a very small area, which is important.
Maiden grapes can create shade in a gazebo or disguise an ugly fence
You can use it to create a screen for zoning a site, disguise unsightly buildings and areas: septic tanks and compost heaps, hide a chain-link fence from the views of curious neighbors, and turn a dry tree into a fancy structure.
A garden in which there are maiden grapes always looks visually richer: in the summer there are green vertical planes, and in the fall there are bright yellow and red surfaces that bring a feeling of coziness to the landscape and a romantic mood.
With ease, a girl's grape can cover an entire building
Since this is a deciduous plant, its vines remain bare from autumn to spring, and this does not always look attractive. But the strict lines of the structures of fences, trellises, gazebos and pergolas come to the fore, and the vines lie on top like carpets.
This vine is used in landscape design as an excellent perennial ground cover plant in natural gardens. In addition to the decor, there are also advantages: it regulates the humidity in the area, protects from wind and sun, traps dust, reduces noise; the walls of a residential building covered with virgin ivy do not overheat in the summer, and are well ventilated in the fall and winter when the leaves fall.
Types and varieties
Five-leaved maiden grape (Parthenocissus quinquefolia)
Or virgin virgin grapes. The most commonly grown grape is the five-leafed maiden grape. This fast-growing, shade-tolerant species is native to eastern North America, where it is found in moist forests and scrubland in rich, moist soils. This is a large vine, the vines of which can reach a length of 20 m. The young shoots of the plant are reddish, but with age they turn green. Antennae with 3-8 branches ending in thickenings. The leaves of this species are compound, palmate, consisting of oblong or ovate petiolate leaflets up to 10 cm long with a pointed apex. The color of the upper side of the leaves is dark green, the lower side of the leaves is lighter, with a bluish tint. Umbrella-shaped apical inflorescences consist of 3-6 flowers. The fruits are blue-black berries with a bluish bloom.
This species is durable, easily reproduces in different ways, tolerates urban conditions well, and is not damaged by fungi and insects. It is so winter-hardy that it overwinters in the middle zone without shelter. However, five-leaf maiden grapes in Siberia still require insulation for the winter. The species has been in culture since 1622. The most valuable decorative forms of five-leaf grapes are:
- Engelman - small-leaved form of the main species;
- wall - the antennae of this variety have numerous branches with thickened suction cups, which allow the lashes to climb a smooth, vertical surface;
- hairy - less winter-hardy, but more attractive form with reddish-colored shoots and leaves, the underside of which is pubescent;
- Saint-Paul is a plant with pubescent shoots at a young age and elongated inflorescences, the tendrils of which have up to 12 branches;
- Star Showers - this variety has marbled foliage: in the warm season it is green with white spots, and in the fall the spots turn pink and the leaves turn red.
Maiden grape (Parthenocissus tricuspidata)
Or ivy is native to Japan, China, the Korean Peninsula and the extreme southwest of Primorye. It is a vine with branched tendrils and a large number of suckers. Various in shape, smooth, as if varnished, leaves up to 20 cm in diameter on one plant can be triangular, three-lobed, round, bladeless, or heart-shaped. In spring the leaves are bright purple; in autumn they turn golden yellow, bronze or bright red. Small, unattractive flowers form oblong clusters of inflorescences. The fruits of this species are the same bluish-black with a bluish bloom, like those of the five-leaf maiden grape.
Tripoint grapes cope well with dust and smoke, but are not particularly winter hardy, although they can withstand short frosts down to -15 ºC. It is successfully cultivated in Ukraine, but in the conditions of the middle zone this grape freezes out in winter. The decorative qualities of plants of this species are admirable. Most often, tripointed girlish grapes are used to decorate walls. This species has been in cultivation since 1862. The most popular forms of triacid grapes in landscape design are:
- Vicha is a plant with small leaves, simple or consisting of three leaves;
- purple - a form with dark purple leaves throughout the growing season;
- golden - a plant with marbled leaves: there are golden-yellow spots on the green foliage.
Maiden grape attached (Parthenocissus inserta)
This is a vine up to 3 m long, the stems of which rise upward with the help of underdeveloped suckers and tendrils. The plant has beautiful palmate-compound leaves, consisting of 3-5 ovate or elliptical leaflets with a wedge-shaped base and a sharp apex. The upper side of the leaves is dark green, shiny, the lower side is matte and lighter. This species is grown in Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova, the Baltic countries and southern Russia, but in the middle zone the attached virgin grapes suffer from frost.
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In addition to those described, sometimes in cultivation you can find such types of maiden grapes as seven-leaf, Henry and Thomson.
Maiden grapes: photo
Reproduction
Maiden grapes can be propagated in the following ways:
Cuttings
Using cuttings, you can quickly and easily propagate virgin grapes. Even if there is not a single plant, you can ask a neighbor for planting material in the form of cuttings or find it on the edge of the city, in a forest plantation. The easiest way is to root woody cuttings. The main thing is that the cuttings have three healthy green buds.
The thickness of the branch should be about a pencil. You need to cut the branch into pieces 25-30 centimeters long. The depth of the hole in which the segments need to be planted should be 7-10 centimeters. It is necessary to bury the cuttings so that only 2 buds are underground and the rest are above the surface.
After planting, the cuttings must be watered. In summer, the plant needs to be watered more abundantly. This way it will grow more actively. It is also necessary to build a shelter from the sun.
Seeds
This kind of grapes can be planted using seeds, but this process is very long. Sow seeds in late autumn or early spring. Before planting in the autumn, virgin grape seeds must undergo stratification under natural conditions. In the spring they will have to be stratified artificially. The seeds will sprout only next year at the beginning of summer.
Grape seeds do not lose their viability for about a year if they are stored at room temperature. The sowing depth in the soil should be about 1-1.5 centimeters.
Root suckers
It is also very easy to propagate virgin grapes using root suckers, since they are quite easy to dig up and transplant to a new place for further growth. Root shoots are formed at the base of the vine as a result of rapid branching of branches.
By layering
A minimum of effort needs to be put into propagating the plant by layering. To do this, you need to lay out a bunch of grapes on the ground. Then pin it with wire in the places where the knots are located and sprinkle everything with earth. During hot weather, water the whip generously. Next spring it is necessary to divide the buds, namely, carefully dig up the roots and transplant them to a new habitat.
Cuttings
Cuttings can be carried out both in spring and autumn. To do this, you will need to choose a middle-aged whip, at least 3-4 years old, as thick as a pencil. We cut the vine into several pieces so that each cutting has at least one green cob. We tear off all the leaves. After this, all that remains is to plant the cuttings in fertile soil so that the buds remain on the surface. In order to speed up the process of formation of the root system, it is necessary to scratch the part that will be buried under the ground. If the cutting was planted in a sunny area, be sure to shade it as soon as the first shoot forms. After this, all that remains is to water it regularly in order to ensure good survival.
Advantages and disadvantages
When planning to plant virgin grapes, you should know not only about the positive properties of the plant, but also about its disadvantages.
Advantages
The flexible stems of the vine allow, with a prepared frame, to create any decorative forms - from simple to the most bizarre.
Among other advantages of “wild” grapes:
- decorative, attractive appearance throughout the summer and until late autumn;
- protects buildings from heat, dust, rain and wind;
- high survival rate, undemanding to soil and light;
- practically not susceptible to diseases and pests;
- durability - retains decorative properties throughout its entire lifespan;
- good frost resistance, the lashes usually do not freeze;
- enhanced regeneration - new parts quickly grow in place of damaged parts;
- resistance to lack of moisture - with scanty watering, a developed root system provides the plant with moisture from the soil;
- accelerated growth rates - grows up to 25 m in height, during the first 2-3 years it grows by several meters;
- does not require much space on the site, but covers large areas.
Maiden grapes in the decorative design of the site
Flaws
Some advantages of a vine if placed or cared for incorrectly can easily become its disadvantages:
- Strong stems can grow and penetrate under the roof (especially under slates and tiles) and over time cause damage to it and also clog gutters. They appear mainly when growing grapes near buildings.
- A powerful and fast-growing root system, when placed near the foundation, can lead to its destruction.
- When planted near windows and terraces, the dense foliage provides extensive shade; To improve the access of light to the premises, it is necessary to regularly remove shoots and form a green mass.
- The appearance of greenery on the stems is late; in the spring, the decorative role of the plant is minimal.
Thick cover of overgrown wild grapes
Ornamental trees and shrubs » Why you need to have maiden grapes in every garden of the Non-Black Earth Region and other regions of the country
Why you need to have maiden grapes in every garden of the Non-Black Earth Region and other regions of the country
One day in the autumn, while walking around the village, I saw a fascinating sight in one yard. All the walls of the house, barns and nooks were densely covered with a plant with huge carved leaves of a bright crimson color. And so these leaves burned in the sun, and with their festive colors they decorated the autumn garden so much that I realized that this vine should be in my garden. Moreover, in the village there will always be ugly walls that I would like to hide and decorate with something. So, this beautiful vine turned out to be “five-leaved maiden grape”... Five-leafed maiden grape or parthenocissus
Parthenocissus quinquefolia (Grape family)
Maiden grape
is a root-climbing vine, unpretentious, frost-resistant, shade-tolerant, grows on any soil anywhere, grows well, canes grow up to 20 m. Quickly drapes walls (annual growth 2-3 m). In my garden, three cuttings measuring 20 cm in size, after three years, densely covered the entire shed. In nature, virgin grapes grow in the eastern states of North America. It became known in culture in 1622.
Why do I recommend having virgin grapes in every garden of the Non-Black Earth Region and other regions of the country?
Because: * virgin grapes are winter-hardy and are not afraid of any frost; * does not require any shelter for the winter, which means you will not have any unnecessary troubles; * the vines of this grape do not need to be removed for the winter and they do not need support; * virgin grapes do not get sick and are not damaged by pests; * not picky about soil; * tolerates even shady places; * and with all this unpretentiousness, girlish grapes are unusually decorative and grow quickly. In a word, they stuck it in the ground, watered it well and forgot about it. Only sometimes you will have to trim off excessively overgrown vines (or those growing in the wrong place where you want them), as well as remove old and broken ones. But this is only good for the plant. The main decorative feature of the maiden grape is its beautiful ornamental foliage, especially in the fall, when it turns a dark crimson color. Perhaps no garden plant can produce such a beautiful shade of autumn foliage. See how the lashes of girlish grapes beautifully entwine a chain-link fence, hiding the courtyard from prying eyes.
You just need to take into account that the decorative nature of the foliage is fully revealed in open sunny places.
The grapes will grow well in the shade, but don’t expect crimson-crimson leaves in the shade in the fall. The leaves will only be green. But this also has its own charm. Maiden grapes bloom
in July, but very modestly. But the flowers are fragrant and attract bees and bumblebees.
The fruits are small (up to 1 cm in diameter), inedible, ripen in September, dark blue in color with a waxy coating, collected in small clusters.
They look like grapes, but only very small. Perhaps that is why this plant is called “grape”. But why “girlish”? So far I have not found an answer to this question. My maiden grapes began to bloom and bear fruit in the third year after planting and have bloomed and bear fruit every year since then. This vine is simply irreplaceable where you need to quickly and beautifully drape the walls of buildings and structures. And for those who don’t want to spend all day caring for their plants in the garden (and that’s me), girl’s grapes are just a godsend - they are beautiful, unpretentious, and grow quickly. This rich greenery was once an unsightly shed that we couldn’t clean out because we stored firewood in it. And now the unsightly barn looks like a huge green bush.
And the entrance to the covered courtyard is now also decorated with greenery:
Maiden grapes
do not need support
.
It is enough for the vine vines to find some kind of support in the form of a wall or fence. There is no need to help him with any additional means. Perhaps in the first year of life, the first shoots will have to be helped and given direction by carefully tying them to some small support. This is only necessary if the wall on which the grapes will grow is too smooth, and it is simply difficult for the young plant to find any clue. But within a month the lashes will look for support on their own. And over the years, they will easily find something to latch on to. Maiden grape is a root-climbing vine. This means that it clings to uneven walls with adventitious roots. It is thanks to this natural feature that it does not require special support. Its lashes themselves are firmly fused with the support by numerous suction cups located at the ends of the antennae. Moreover, they grow together so tightly that sometimes it is difficult to tear them out of the wall. So it’s best to leave the vine to its own devices, and in a short time it will drape a large wall on its own. Maiden grapes are so undemanding about the planting site
that any wall, including the western and northern ones, is suitable for it. The only difference will be that on the south wall in the fall the foliage will be a rich crimson color, while on the north wall it can retain its green color until frost. But, despite its shade tolerance, virgin grapes, of course, will grow better and fully display their beauty in sunny and well-lit places.
In my garden (Yaroslavl region), I planted virgin grapes both in spring (April-May) and autumn (September - early October).
I didn't notice much of a difference. And it’s taking root well anyway. The main thing is that if the summer is hot and dry, then in the first year after planting, water the seedlings thoroughly. If the summer is rainy, then you can forget about watering. How to propagate virgin grapes and where to get its seedlings?
According to science, virgin grapes are propagated: * by layering and cuttings;
survival rate is almost 100%; * seeds; but this method takes a long time, and there is no guarantee that the seeds will have time to ripen in the Non-Black Earth Region. The easiest way is to ask your neighbors for a piece of whip (layering) - and after three years the unsightly wall of the barn is gone. I planted girlish grapes using lash layering
in two ways (and both methods were very successful):
1.
We plant the vine in the ground in a wave-like manner (like a sinusoid).
Wave in the ground, wave above the ground, wave in the ground, wave above the ground, etc. I pinned the wave in the ground with an ordinary hairpin. At the same time, there should be buds on each wave. It seems to me that the grapes will branch better this way. 2.
I simply dug a narrow trench (about 5 cm deep), watered it, waited until the water was absorbed and put a whip in it, the top of which (about 15 cm) was raised above the ground, giving it a vertical position and placing a support so that it I kept it that way.
The trench was covered with earth. also propagated girlish grapes from cuttings
.
And also very successfully. I cut cuttings. For the cuttings, I chose plump branches, well, so that they were no thinner than a pencil. Moreover, on each branch I had 4-5 healthy (that is, green, not dried out) buds. Then I stuck these cuttings into the ground so that there were two buds above the ground, and two or three buds underground. It has taken root wonderfully. I did this in spring, autumn, and even summer. Just don’t forget to water the cuttings and cover them from the hot sun. My main care
for already overgrown girlish grapes comes down to cutting off the vines that are not growing where I want them. I try to do the main pruning of the plant in early spring, before the buds wake up, or in late autumn, when the leaves fall, but before persistent frosts. But I often break this rule and cut off the vines that bother me even in the middle of summer. And, in my opinion, grapes love a haircut. It just grows even thicker. The main thing is to trim the lashes correctly - so that no more than 5 mm remains from the cut point to the bud. If you break this rule, it will not be very beautiful, since stumps of branches will stick out.
However, for all its simplicity, virgin grapes have their own subtleties.
Due to the fact that this plant grows quickly, buildings may not be able to withstand the huge amount of green mass and strong sucker roots, due to which the grapes cling to the support.
And these are the conclusions I came to when I observed the cultivation of girl’s grapes among various residents of our village. Don't forget about them, and then you won't be disappointed. 1.
You cannot plant vines on plastered walls, especially where the plaster has a thermal insulation layer underneath.
Over time, under the weight of the leaves and branches of the virgin grapes, the plaster will simply fall off. This happened to one of the residents of our village. Brick (without plaster!) walls, concrete walls and, of course, wooden walls, fences, gazebos, sheds, and garages are suitable for landscaping with vines. 2.
You can’t let virgin grapes onto tiled roofs.
For him, the tiled roof is too weak, and over time he will simply break it. 3.
You also need to keep in mind that roofs covered with slate can also suffer from maiden grapes.
It clings perfectly to the rough surface of the slate, and under the weight of the green mass, the slate sheets begin to “slide” down. Tested by personal experience. But on flat roofs this may not happen. This is mainly noticeable on gabled roofs. 4.
If there are ventilation holes, gutters, antennas and satellite dishes on the roofs and walls, then the grapes can become very entwined with them.
This is something I encounter from time to time. Therefore, given the presence of the above at my house, I direct the grapes in the right direction or simply cut off the interfering vines. 5.
Also, do not forget that the tendrils of the girl’s grapes grow strongly into the surface, making it almost impossible to remove them later. For wooden surfaces this is not at all scary. But it may be bad for plaster.
And I would also like to talk
about the myths associated with girlish grapes
, in my opinion.
1.
Many amateur gardeners consider virgin grapes to be wild grapes.
It is a myth. Maiden grapes have nothing to do with the well-known edible grape. And the leaves are different, and the tendrils are different. Only the names are similar. 2.
Under the leaves of the virgin grapes, wooden walls quickly rot. This is also a myth. Even after a heavy rain, the wall under the leaves of the maiden grape remains dry. Checked personally! Overgrown grapes with their thick foliage protect the wall from rain, and on a hot summer day it will create coolness, preventing the wall from getting too hot. In autumn and winter, when the leaves have fallen, the walls are perfectly ventilated. That's how big the article turned out to be. But this is only because I really love girlish grapes for their beauty, fast growth and unpretentiousness.
Are you still wondering whether to plant virgin grapes in your garden?
Away with thoughts and forward to the landings. You won't regret it at all! You can decorate walls, fences, unsightly sheds, garages, pergolas, trellises or gazebos, where you can hide from the midday sun in hot weather, and from rain and wind in bad weather. And all this in a short time without any extra effort. Just don’t forget about the intricacies of growing virgin grapes, which I told you about here. And do not pay attention to the myths that you will definitely hear from neighbors and summer residents Loving her garden, Katerina Shlykova (Grushenka), author of the article and photographs Quoting and partial copying
of articles and stories is possible with the source indicated in the form of
an active link
to the corresponding page of the site.
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| Category: Ornamental trees and shrubs | Date: 08/21/2012 | Author: Katerina Shlykova | |
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Edible or not?
Is it possible to eat virgin grapes? The fruits have a sour taste and cause discomfort when consumed. Berry poisoning often occurs as a result of carelessness. It is not recommended to eat this product, especially for children. Eating in large quantities provokes unpleasant symptoms.
Signs:
- The urge to vomit, feeling of nausea,
- Intestinal dysfunction, intense diarrhea,
- Spinning in my head
- Impaired consciousness
- Allergic manifestations,
- Convulsive contractions of muscle tissue.
Children may have an increase in body temperature. In adults, intoxication rarely develops, only when consuming large amounts of berries.
The berries of virgin grapes are not used as raw materials for compote and wine; they retain an unpleasant taste and toxic properties even after heat treatment.
Planting purchased seedlings
When choosing a place for placement, you need to take into account that a mesmerizing bright red-crimson carpet will appear by autumn if the south side is chosen for planting. On the western or eastern wall it will begin to develop quickly and the foliage will be large.
Agricultural technology:
- The decorative liana is not demanding on soil fertility. To achieve the desired bushiness, it is recommended when planting to prepare a substrate from peat, leaf soil, and compost, taken in equal proportions. If the soil is heavy, add a little sand.
- A couple of days before planting, a 20 cm high drainage of broken brick or crushed stone is poured into the bottom of the planting hole. Then the substrate is added up to half of the hole.
- It is recommended to plant mature seedlings in early spring or autumn at a distance of 50-70 cm. They are placed in the center of the planting hole and sprinkled with substrate. The root collar should remain on the surface, but not rise above it.
- It is advisable to mulch the tree trunk circle with peat, bark, and dry grass. The layer thickness should be 5-8 cm. Mulch will protect the soil from rapid evaporation of moisture and help eliminate seasonal weeding.
Video about growing rules.
In the future, the seedlings will need watering once a week until they take root. Adult plants need 3-4 moistenings per season during drought. Fertilizers begin to be applied from the 2nd year of growth, limited to 2 feedings per season. In May, 40-50 g of nitroammophoska are added under each vine, in June - 200 g of Kemira Universal.
Containing growth and pruning girl grapes, preparing for winter
The notorious aggressiveness that is attributed to the liana manifests itself when they do not care at all about basic control over the development of the plant. False grapes will never crawl over a fence or climb onto a roof if they are pruned in time.
Maiden grapes only need controlled pruning.
If he begins to move to another territory, the excess lashes are cut off. The more often you cut them, the thicker the crown will be. To curb growth, most gardeners keep watering and fertilizing to a minimum. Dry branches should be periodically cut out, and exposed roots should be covered with soil.
In the first year after planting, the tree trunk circle is covered with spruce branches and dry leaves. Subsequently, the plants do not require shelter.
Seeds
This method is considered quite troublesome. First you need to stock up on seed material. To do this, we wait for the grapes to rot, after which we carefully pick out the seeds from them. For better germination, they should be stratified with the onset of spring. To do this, the seed is soaked for several hours in ice water, after which it is placed in damp sand and placed in the refrigerator for about a month. After this, all that remains is to sow the seeds in the ground and wait for the first shoots, which will sprout in about three weeks.
Properties of grapes
The properties of the plant are determined by its chemical composition.
Important! Official medicine and domestic folk healers refute the medicinal properties of virgin grapes, but admit that when grown for decorative purposes, the plant copes well with the function of purifying the air and improving the microclimate.
Benefit
According to traditional medicine, virgin grapes have antioxidant, hemostatic, and tonic properties.
Harm and possible contraindications
Due to the large amount of acids and alkaloids, when eating fresh berries, the following are likely:
- disturbances in the gastrointestinal tract (nausea, vomiting);
- allergic reactions;
- neurological disorders (dizziness, convulsions).
When using herbal medicine, you should especially carefully follow the dosages indicated in the recipes and monitor the quality of the raw materials. People suffering from hypotension, varicose veins and thrombophlebitis are not recommended to be treated with decoctions and infusions of this plant.
Five-leafed and tripointed species: what to choose for planting?
The plant is not distinguished by its exotic crown color, lush buds and fancy frame. Its main advantage is the exquisite shape of the leaves. Thanks to the carved edge and finger shape, the crown of the vine has a relief pattern. Taking into account the size of the leaf blades, gardeners select a suitable variety for growing on the site.
The following types are popular today:
- five leaf;
- tripointed, having several varietal hybrids with excellent decorative properties.
Five-leaf is native to North America, where it is known as Virginia grape. Adult specimens reach 20 m in length, side shoots grow up to 3-4 m. They tend to become lignified and darken with age. The unpretentious species got its name thanks to its crown. The foliage of the compound type is collected from 5 small leaves planted on a long petiole. Each leaf has a pointed shape with a jagged edge. With the onset of frost, they acquire a noble burgundy hue.
Five-leaf type
The flowering period of five-leaf grapes occurs in the first ten days of July. However, the exact timing will depend on the region of growth. Inflorescences last from one and a half to two weeks. Umbrellas consist of simple white flowers. After the specified period, the first fruit ovaries appear. The berries ripen by the end of August and are of purely decorative interest.
Triacrimony is an inhabitant of the Far East; it is characterized by high frost resistance and ease of care. European landscape designers dubbed the tripointed species Boston ivy, since its leaves externally resemble the crown of poison ivy. Shoots of wild grapes grow at a speed of 1-1.3 m per month. The crown consists of glossy leaves that have an elongated shape and a tee-shaped ending.
There are several hybrid varieties on sale that differ in color. For example, the Golden variety grows up to 12 m in length, the foliage is decorated with golden-yellow spots. The leaves of the purple variety have purple veins and scarlet pigment.
Tripointed view
