Why not emulate the ancient custom of making a hedge of grape vines? To do this, you allow your young vine to develop only one single rod, which you train horizontally along a wire or bamboo canes, nailed to pegs driven into the soil.
When this rod has reached a length of 13’ feet, you bend the end of it downwards and push it firmly to a depth of 6” inches or more into the ground.
It will then take root (we hope) and spring up quite soon in new growth for the next rod when you repeat the process repeatedly until your original vine with its recurrent progeny has attained the length you require. You see the advantages.
How To Make A Hedge Of Grape Vines
First, you need only one rootstock to start the process; very economical. (Of course, if you like to plant two, one at either end, it would go quicker, and they would meet in the middle, like engineers working through an Alpine tunnel.)
Secondly, you can control your rods into any shape to suit the layout of your garden; you could grow them in a straight line down a long path, for example, or you could make them turn sharp corners at right angles to form an enclosure, vines being very flexible and tractable.
Thirdly, by the time the rods have made old wood, they should need no propping or staking; they will have grown tough enough to support themselves.
Fourthly, if you wish, you can grow this serialized vine a mile long. What a thought! Fifthly, you can eat the grapes.
44659 by V. Sackville-West