From Book News, Inc.
Writer and nurseryman Lon Rombaugh writes a marvelously detailed guide to the cultivation of the grape. Organic methods are emphasized throughout, as well as cultivation matters ranging from siting a vineyard and developing healthy soil to the details of pruning and breeding. The book includes valuable and hard-to-find information on cold hardiness, heirloom varieties, and native American grape species, as well as providing abundant resources and three pages of color photos. Detailed line drawings and diagrams throughout.Copyright © 2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

Rocky Mountain News, March 29, 2003
"A great how-to book. The only reference you need if you want to raise a few grape vines."

Choice Magazine, May 2003
"Packed with useful information, this book benefits from the author's personalized writing style. Immensely enjoyable."

Gardening Newsletter, February 2003
"It would be difficult to find a book covering any aspect of growing grapes that is not included here."

Book Description
Grapes are the most popular and widely grown fruit in the world. From the tropics to Alaska, grapes will grow successfully in almost every climate. Whether you raise them for fresh eating, or for making wine, juice, or jellies and preserves, the right grapes will reward you with abundant crops for a modest investment of time and effort. Now for the first time comes a book for grape growers who wish to use organic growing methods to raise healthy, thriving vineyards in the backyard or on a small commercial scale. The Grape Grower distills the broad knowledge and long-time personal experience of Lon Rombough, one of North America’s foremost authorities on viticulture. From finding and preparing the right site for your vineyard to training, trellising, and pruning vines to growing new grapes from seeds and cuttings, The Grape Grower offers thorough and accessible information on all the basics. The chapters on grape species, varieties, and hybrids are alone worth the price of a college course in viticulture. And technical information on the major (and minor) insect pests and diseases that affect grapes, as well as their organic controls, makes this book an invaluable reference that readers will turn to again and again. Rombaugh also provides a wealth of information on hardy but little-known grapes that are native to North America, and on a wide range of topics, including: • pruning neglected or overgrown vines • growing grapes on arbors and in greenhouses • controlling animal pests in the vineyard • bunch grapes and muscadine grapes for the South • winter protection, and how to increase the hardiness of grapes • creating your own new varieties

About the Author
Lon Rombough is a well-known garden writer, nurseryman, and fruit grower. He has more than thirty-five years experience growing grapes and maintains hundreds of varieties in his small vineyard. A prominent member of North American Fruit Explorers, or NAFEX, he lives in western Oregon.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Grapes for the Millions! Grapes are the most popular and widely grown fruit in the world, delicious for fresh eating and as juice, wine, jelly, or raisins. Most people rely on the relatively few varieties sold in the supermarket. Yet grapes are so varied and adaptable that regardless of where you live -- from the tropics to the Arctic -- there are types that will grow well for you, providing a perennial harvest and demanding little in return. Now there's no reason to settle for the same old varieties. Every gardener or orchardist should grow a few vines, and The Grape Grower is your ticket to getting started. Grapes for Every Place and Every Taste! Author and long-time grape grower Lon Rombough provides all the information you need to succeed with grapes: from siting your vineyard to pruning and training; from improving your soil to revitalizing an old neglected grapevine; from greenhouse growing to breeding your own unique varieties. Along the way he emphasizes organically approved methods, including products and techniques for controlling pests and disease. There's even information on native North American grapes and on the many hybrid grapes that have been developed from them. Complete descriptions of hundreds of grape varieties let you choose the ones that will perform best in your region, including bunch grapes and muscadines for humid, southern climates. The Grape Grower is the most comprehensive and useful book ever to focus on table grapes for the home gardener or small-scale vineyardist. Whether you're just getting started, or already have a hundred vines, this book is an indispensable resource that can literally save you a "bunch" of time, money, and frustration.

SYNOPSIS