🌿 Grapevine flowering
A brief spell in early summer when small fragrant flowers bloom on the vine.
Grapevine flowering is a short period in early summer when tiny fragrant flowers open on the vine. In the Northern Hemisphere it is usually late May or June. The flowers are greenish, very small and gathered in clusters. The petals do not open as in other plants but drop off as a little cap.
Most wine grape varieties are self-pollinating, and pollen reaches the ovary with almost no insects. This takes one or two weeks. Good weather during flowering is very important: rain, cold or wind hinder pollination. Fewer berries then set, and the crop can fall sharply. Events in which flowers drop or berries come out in different sizes are called shatter and hen-and-chicken (millerandage).
Flowering is a stage in the vine's yearly cycle, and the grape berries appear after it. Usually about a hundred days pass from flowering to harvest. From the flowering date growers estimate the harvest time and crop size in advance. So flowering gives the first estimate of the year.
Links
- Next step
- 🌿 Grape berry
- Part of
- 🌿 Annual growth cycle of grapevines
Frequently asked questions
When do grapevines flower?
In the Northern Hemisphere usually in late May or June.
Why does weather matter during flowering?
Rain, cold and wind hinder pollination, so fewer berries set.
How long after flowering is the harvest?
Usually about a hundred days.
Similar
🌿 Budbreak · 🌿 Véraison · 🌿 Grape pulp · 🌿 Grape cluster · 🌿 Grape skin · 🌿 Grape seed