Grapes (Vitis venefera)

 

Recommended Varieties
Israel blue

Cardinal

Black Muscat
Muscat MI

French MI

 

 

This article is about the beverage. For other uses, see

 Wine (disambiguation).

Wine glasses of white wine and red wine

16th-century wine press

Wine is an alcoholic beverage made from fermented grapes or other fruits. The natural chemical balance of grapes lets them ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes, water, or other nutrients. Yeast consumes the sugars in the grapes and converts them into alcohol and carbon dioxide. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts produce different styles of wine. The well-known variations result from the very complex interactions between the biochemical development of the fruit, reactions involved in fermentation, and human intervention in the overall process. The final product may contain tens of thousands of chemical compounds in amounts varying from a few percent to a few parts per billion.

Wines made from produce besides grapes are usually named after the product from which they are produced (for example, rice wine, pomegranate wine, apple wine and elderberry wine) and are generically called fruit wine. The term "wine" can also refer to starch-fermented or fortified beverages having higher alcohol content, such as barley wine or sake.

Wine has a rich history dating back thousands of years, with the earliest known production occurring around 6000 BC in Georgia. It first appeared in the Balkans about 4500 BC and was very common in ancient Greece, Thrace and Rome. Wine has also played an important role in religion throughout history. The Greek god Dionysus and the Roman equivalent, Bacchus, represented wine. The drink is also used in Christian Eucharist ceremonies and the Jewish Kiddush.

Field Establishment
Environment requirement
Can be grown successfully, well-drained, deep soils in the dry zone of Sri Lanka, under irrigation.

Crop Management
Agronomic and cultural practices
Planting should be done with the on set of dry spell. Size of the planting hole is 1m X 1m X 1m, and should be filled with a mixture of topsoil and well-decomposed cow-dung at a ratio of 1:1. Spacing varies with the vine training system adopted.

Pandol system                               : 8m X 4m
Geneva double curtain system (GDC)    : 2.6m X 3m
Fence systems                              : 2.6m X 3m

Fertilizer requirement

Stage of the crop	Urea (g/vine)	TSP (g/vine)	MOP (g/vine)
At planting	120	80	250
Four months after planting	120	80	250
After first pruning	180	120	375
After 2nd pruning	240	160	500
After 3rd pruning	300	200	625
After 4th pruning	360	240	750
After 5th pruning	420	280	875
After 6th pruning & on ward	480	320	1000

Pruning
Pruning is an essential practice in viticulture. In Sri Lanka grapes can be pruned two times a year, that is in mid June and end of December. However, time of pruning have to determine, considering the prevailing weather condition and the growing phase of the vines. In general, irrigation has to stop five days before and after pruning and should irrigate as necessary in other times.

Pest and Disease
Pest
Vine girdler, cuts the mature vines; can be controlled
Paddle legged bug, feed on young shoots and caused to dried off the shoots; can be controlled

Diseases
Powdery and downy mildew, damage the new shoots, leaves, flowers and flower inflorescence. Can be controlled by adopting recommended cultural practices and using chemicals, (Metalaxil, or Bordeaux mixture).

Harvesting & Post-harvest Technology
Grapes vines can be maintained up to thirty years as a crop. Average yield is about 20-25 Mt/ha. After 3-4 years of establishment a vine can produce over 30 Kg of fruits per year. In addition an additional income can be obtained by planting material production, as there is a grate demand for planting materials at present.

Crop: Grapes
Program: Crop Improvment

Activity	Responsibility		Indicators	Time Frame
	Station	Officer
Germplasm collection and evaluation	MI, Weerawila
Possibility of generating varities from seeds by tissue culture techniques	PGRC HORDI

Program: Crop Management

Activity	Responsibility		Indicators	Time Frame
	Station	Officer
Development of traning & pruning techniques.	MI A.pelessa	S.G.Piyadasa	Traning systems	08 Yrs (2002-2010)
Studies on shoot density	MI	S.G.Piyadasa	Pruning techniques
Studies on irrigation management	A'pelessa

Program: Plant Protection

Activity	Responsibility		Indicators	TimeFrame
	Station	Officer
Screening of fungicides and development of control measures for downy mildew disease.	MI,Makandura
Studies on controlling insect pest problems.	HORDI

Program: Planting Material Production

Activity	Responsibility		Indicators	Time Frame
	Station	Officer
Production of planting material of recommende varieties	MI	S.G.Piyadasa	Production and maintence of motherstocks.	Cont.