Concord, Grape Plants

Concord Grape Plant

Classic purple grapes offer unmistakable American flavor
Vigorous vines cover arbors with abundant annual growth
Fruit excels fresh, juiced, jellied, or fermented
Strong support and full sun encourage production

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Key Attributes

Botanical Name

Vitis labrusca

Days to maturity

2 Years

Sun

Full Sun

Zones 4–8 Check your growing zone

About Concord, Grape Plant, Grape Plant

A purple grape that is great for eating fresh or making wine! Concord is supplied as a live plant ready to establish in the garden. The grape is a deciduous vine that is used for fruit, wine and shade. A single grapevine produces enough new growth every year to roof an arbor, arch a walkway, or shade over a terrace or deck. The Concord grape variety can be grown in any region of the continental United States.

Growing details

Plant profile

Life Cycle

Perennial

Hardiness Zone

Zones 4-8

Plant Height

60 inches

Growth Habits

Climbing, Vining

Seed & variety

Color

Purple

Before Planting

A grapevine requires a permanent sunny site, free air movement, and a sturdy support capable of holding mature wood and fruit. Avoid low frost pockets and poorly drained soil. Select a cultivar with enough winter hardiness and season length for the region before building the trellis.

Planting

Plant dormant vines in early spring. Spread roots through a generous hole and position the plant at its nursery depth, keeping any graft union above the soil. Water thoroughly, cut the top back to a strong shoot as recommended, and tie that shoot loosely toward the training wire.

Watering

Deep watering during establishment develops a broad root system. Mature vines usually need supplemental irrigation during prolonged drought and berry sizing, but excessive water near ripening can dilute flavor and split fruit. Keep foliage dry when possible.

Fertilizer

Grapes often need less fertilizer than their vigorous growth suggests. Base spring nitrogen on shoot length, leaf color, and testing rather than habit. Heavy feeding creates shaded canopies, delays ripening, and reduces winter hardiness.

Harvesting

Clusters are ready only when flavor, color, and sweetness are fully developed; grapes do not improve after picking. Taste berries from different parts of a cluster, then cut ripe bunches with shears and handle them by the stem.

Tips

Annual dormant pruning is essential because fruit forms on shoots from one-year-old wood. Train a defined trunk-and-cordon or cane system, remove most previous growth each winter, and manage shoots during summer to expose clusters without sunscald.

Pests & Diseases

Black rot, powdery mildew, downy mildew, Phomopsis, and Botrytis bunch rot are major grape diseases. Remove mummified berries and prune infected canes before spring growth. Train vines for sunlight and airflow, and monitor clusters from bloom through veraison; prevention must begin before fruit symptoms appear.

Japanese beetles, grape berry moths, leafhoppers, phylloxera, birds, black rot, and powdery mildew may appear. Remove mummified fruit, prune for airflow, monitor clusters from bloom onward, and net before birds begin feeding.