Choosing The Best Grow Tube Height For Your Vineyard
For maximum greenhouse benefits, the fewest trips to train vines and the greatest protection from browsing animals and harmful weed sprays, choose the tallest grow tube height that will still be at least 6 inches shorter than your cordon (fruiting) wire when installed. Allowing at least 6 inches of space between the tube top and the cordon allows for a gentle curve to train the vine and will help avoid sharp angles which can constrict or break the vine stem at the wire.
Use the image below and choose the Jump Start Grow Tube height best suited for your vineyard based on your cordon wire height. The taller the tube, the fewer training passes will be be required. A good rule of thumb is that each 6 inches of tube height above 18 inches saves one additional pass to train that vine.
Guidelines For Use
- Please Note: Vine Grow Tube Shelters Do Not Protect From Frost - Plantra Jump Start Grow Tube Shelters or any other vine grow tubes with an open top are designed for use during the frost-free growing season only and do not protect from frost. Do not use grow tube shelters with the intent to protect young planting stock from frost or to otherwise extend the growing season where frost may occur.
- Install grow tubes at the time of planting - no matter how hot it is. Jump Start Grow Tubes act like mini-greenhouses for your vines and are intended to be installed on new vines right away to protect them from desiccating winds, deer, rabbits and other animals, mechanical weeding equipment and harmful weed sprays. There's no need to worry about heat because Jump Start is designed to safely grow your vines fast, healthy and with balanced root/shoot ratios even in hot, dry, desert conditions!
- Keep grow tubes on all growing season for maximum benefit.
- Remove grow tubes at the onset of fall. As noted above, vine grow tube shelters are designed for the 1st growing season and do not extend the growing season by protecting from frost. Removing grow tubes allows vines to achieve proper dormancy (hardening-off). This especially important for vines planted in cold weather regions or when planted late and remain small and shorter than the tube.
- Store your Jump Start Grow Tubes out of the sun and they'll be ready to use again and again.
Jump Start "C-Style" Vine Grow Tube Installation Instructions
3 quick methods to install your Jump Start C-Style Grow Tubes securely and with the proper open diameter.
1. Quick Tying - Push tying material like Stretch-Lock anchor bands, tie tape and twist ties through the tie holes on each end. Complete installation by wrapping ties around the stake.
2. Quick Staple - Lock the tabs around the opposing edges. Using a plier stapler, staple both ends of grow tube to set the tube diameter. Tie tube to stake or wire being careful to avoid over-tightening which can crush the tube.
3. Quick Threading With Small Diameter Training Stake - Line up tie holes formed by pushing both tabs through overlapped holes. Push a small diameter stake such as pencil rod, rebar, bamboo or fiberglass through the top hole from the inside to outside. Push the rod down the outside of the grow tube almost to the other end. Line up bottom holes. Push rod through bottom holes. Complete installation by pushing bottom of rod into soil and attaching to to trellis wire.
