Riverbank (Frost) Grape 2L

General description: The riverbank grape tolerates drought, low temperatures, high substrate salinity and air pollution, which is why it’s a great vine for planting in urban areas. It latches onto support using its tendrils. It is recommended for planting alongside fences, arbours, trellises, and other garden support structures. The riverbank grape is fantastic for concealing high fences or unattractive and dilapidated buildings.

Fruit: The riverbank grape bears dark-coloured fruit. The aren’t appetizing but are very ornamental and they attract birds.

Flowers: The riverbank grape’s flowers are very small, beige and very fragrant (similar in scent to Reseda plants). The flowers are melliferous.

Blooming: This vine's flowers bloom in May and June.

Leaves: The riverbank grape has roundish, delicately lobed leaves with serrated margins. They are medium-sized, light green and turn yellow in autumn.

Cultivation requirements: This grapevine prefers sunny or semi-shaded locations. It’s undemanding soil-wise and tolerates drought as well as high salinity, however, as with other varieties of grapevines, it grows best in light, well-drained soil, and doesn’t like heavy, wet substrates. Seedlings should be planted every 1-1.5 meters, 10-15 cm deeper than in the pot they came in. Very small seedlings should be planted in a shallow hole and only covered wholly with soil in autumn. This significantly increases the frost resistance of grapevines and increases the efficiency of watering freshly planted vines.

Care: To build a powerful root system, grapevines need a lot of water. Caring for a newly planted seedling is basically limited to systematic watering. It is especially important to pay attention to watering in early summer and as the grapes ripen. Each young vine requires up to three buckets of water per watering.

Pruning: The riverbank grape does not require pruning.

Props: This vine is perfect for planting next to trellises, bowers, pergolas and arbours, poles and columns, fences, gates, building walls, sound screens, as well as for growing in plant containers and in public green spaces.

Overwintering: The riverbank grape withstands temperature drops of down to -35°C but protecting young seedlings for the winter (for e.g., by using agrotextiles) is recommended. At the beginning of November, cover young seedlings by piling a mound of soil with peat about 30 cm in height over the plants. This not only insulates them from the cold, but also shields them against flooding during the thaw.

Origin: Canada.