Vitis viniferaGrape Vine

A pergola planted with Vitis vinifera does something no built structure can. It shades heavily all summer, then drops its leaves and lets the winter sun straight through. Courtyard architecture across the Mediterranean and the Middle East has relied on that for thousands of years.

It is a woody deciduous climber with palmately lobed leaves, insignificant green flowers and, given sun and pruning, a crop. Winter dormancy and annual pruning are not optional; both are how the plant works.

Specifications

• Height10 to 20 metres unpruned, or trained at 2 to 4 metres on a structure
• Width3 to 8 metres
• Native toThe Mediterranean, central Europe and southwestern Asia
• FoliageLarge palmately lobed leaves turning yellow and red before falling; deciduous
• Growth rateFast

Conditions

• SoilPrefers deep, free-draining, stony or gravelly soils and tolerates alkaline ground
• LightFull sun
• WaterLow; drought-tolerant once established and deep-rooting
• ClimateThrives in Mediterranean, warm temperate and hot arid regions with a cool winter

Additional Features

• FlowersSmall green flowers in early summer, inconspicuous but lightly scented
• FruitBunches of green, red or black grapes ripening in late summer and autumn
• UsesPergolas, shade structures, courtyards, walls and productive landscaping
• SpacingPlant 2 to 3 metres apart along a pergola or wire structure
• Low MaintenanceRequires annual winter pruning back to a framework, which is unavoidable rather than optional
• Pest ResistanceWatch for powdery and downy mildew in humid conditions
• Drought ToleranceDeep roots carry established vines through long dry summers
• Cultural SignificanceAmong the oldest cultivated plants of the Middle East and the Mediterranean

The Grape Vine is the original shade structure planting, giving summer cover, winter sun and a crop from the same framework.