Waiting on Some Soil…analysis

Patience has never been the strongest virtue I possess but I'm beginning to wonder if I'm going to be able to plant at all this season. It will likely take an additional 2 weeks to get my vines here once ordered but I can't until I know whether the soil will support my select of Cabernet Sauvignon and 1103P rootstock.

Grafting is like two legos one on top of the other. The top lego has its roots whacked off and is suavely duck taped to the bottom lego which has its head cut off. This chimera begins taking on the characteristics of both.

More technically, I'm learning, each individual rootstock is especially adapt at certain soil situations (i.e. alkalinity, acidity, high phylloxera prevalence, wet soil, etc). The scion, which is the top lego, has the grape variety desired and when the two are combined you get the rooty robustness of one with the deliciousness of the other.

It is very rare to plant now a days with anything other than grafted vines. The reason is that the species usually desired for harvesting (cabernet, syrah, pinot whatever) is usually a European variety, one that genetically doesn't have legs to support it in phylloxera soil.

This was learned the hard way in the 1850's I believe when European vineyards received phylloxera laced samples as a token of good will from their American friends. In the following years nearly 80% of the vines in Europe died.

TV Munson, a crusty Texan with a penchant for plants, discovered that grafting resistant roots to tasty varieties conferred resistance and is highly credited with saving the french wine industry. There's probably a statue of him in Burgundy somewhere.

Grafting isn't terribly hard. You can do it by slitting the side of the health vine and inserting a split bud (where the bud is intact but it's supporting stem is split perpendicular to the bud) and slipping it into the cut rootstock. As you can see below, even a newbie can do it. And yes…it's polka dot tape. I'm a backyard dad with two girls, I gave up man tape a long time ago.

That's a Cabernet Sauvignon leaf. Woot.

We'll see if it grows grapes in the years to come.

Which reminds me of a proverb: he who will not plant, will not reap. Which means I need some soil analysis to quit scrolling Facebook and get here.