How to Grow a Black Corinth
“Black Corinth” (Vitis vinifera “Black Corinth”) is also known as “Zante Currant.” A European grape vine, it produces sweet, red-black, almost seedless grapes which are commonly dried for raisins. It is hardy in U.S. Department of Agriculture plant hardiness zones 5 to 9 and requires a sunny planting site with at least eight hours of direct sunlight per day. For best fruit production, it should be trained to a multi-wire trellis but it can also be trained to grow on a fence or over an arbor.
Prepare the planting site in the summer or fall prior to planting the grape vine. Do not plant the “Black Corinth” vines where water drains slowly. Remove any vegetation growing at the planting site. Use a shovel or tiller to work a 2- to 4-inch deep layer of compost, well-aged manure, leaf mold, peat moss or well-aged sawdust thoroughly into the soil to a depth of 10 to 12 inches. Check the soil pH to see if it is between 6.5 and 7. Mix lime into the soil if the pH is below 6.5 and sulfur if the pH is above 7. Construct a multi-wire trellis, if desired.
Plant only certified virus-free “Black Corinth” Clone 2 vines in early spring. Plant them below a multi-wire trellis or next to a fence or arbor. Dig the planting hole twice as wide as the grape vine rootball. Dig it deep enough to plant the vine at the same depth is was growing previously. Space multiple vines 7 to 8 feet apart. Water the vine generously to help settle the soil around the roots.
Trim off broken or very long roots on bare-root plants with sharp pruners.. Use the pruners to remove all but one main stem or cane. Cut them off cleanly at the base. Leave the strongest cane to grow into the main stem. Prune this stem or cane back to only two growth buds. Insert a bamboo cane or stake just behind the vine for it to climb up to the trellis or tie a wire to the top of the cane and to the trellis wire.
Water the vine as often as necessary to keep the soil moist but not muddy. Remove weeds and debris from around the base of the stem as soon at they are noticed. Give the vine ½ to 1 ounce of a balanced 16-16-16 fertilizer after it begins to grow and produce green leaves. Prune off new side shoots before they reach 1 foot long. Use pruners to cut the main stem or cane back to a growth bud or node 3 to 4 inches above the top of the trellis structure in late winter of the following year.
Water the vine once per week in the absence of rain from the second year on. Give the vine fertilizer in the spring after new growth begins. Allow side shoots to develop from the stem. Train them to grow in opposite directions along the trellis wires or fence. Maintain only two side shoots or cordons and remove any new shoots that grow from the stem. Use nail or grape scissors to prune off any fruit that begins to form in the second year.
Prune each cordon back to 10 growth spurs with only two or three nodes on each spur in late winter each year. Allow only one bunch of grapes to mature per spur during the third year. Allow the vine to fruit freely from the fourth year on.
- University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Sustainable Agriculture: Organic Grape Production
- University of Illinois Extension: Hortanswers: Small Fruit: Grape: Vitis Vinifera
- University of California: UC Integrated Viticulture: Raisin Grape Varieties
- University of Minnesota: SULIS: Amending Soils for Perennial Beds
- The soil test can be done by the local Extension office.
Reannan Raine worked for 30 years in the non-profit sector in various positions. She recently became a licensed insurance agent but has decided to pursue a writing career instead. Ms. Raine is hoping to have her first novel published soon.