How to Mulch Around Grape Vines

Overview

Grapes vines are generally hardy and tenacious garden plants, and the fruit can be used for fresh eating, juice, jelly and wine. While most grapes prefer hot climates, there are some varieties of grapes that can be grown as far north as Minnesota or Canada, although grapes in cold regions usually need winter protection like mulch. Mulch also helps keep down weeds and regulates soil moisture. Grape vines should be trained up a trellis to keep them off the ground.

Step 1

Remove weeds by hand around your grape vine before applying mulch. Grape vines are very sensitive to chemicals, so synthetic herbicides are not recommended. If you're removing weeds with a hoe, be careful not to damage the trunks of the grape vines.

Step 2

Consider laying down landscaping fabric alongside your grape vines. The dense fabric acts as a weed barrier and may help keep the soil warm in cooler climates. However, landscaping fabric might heat up the soil too much in hot climates. Also, landscaping fabric is often constructed of woven plastic and will never decompose, and many gardeners don't like to use synthetic materials in their garden.

Step 3

Spread mulch around your grape vines. Leave a space of at least 2 inches around the trunk, since decomposing organic material may damage the bark of the grape vine trunk. Shredded bark is a good mulch to use around grape vines, since it is dense enough to block weeds and takes a long time to decompose. Dark brown shredded bark is also very aesthetically pleasing in a vineyard. You can also mulch around your grape vines with straw. The mulch should be 4 to 6 inches thick and should extend about 2 feet from the base of the grape vine.

Step 4

Replenish the mulch as needed to keep down weeds. Gardeners in cold climates should make sure their grape vines have plenty of mulch before going into winter.