I agree with evrything Lon said. Laterals are grown by the vine to
help it ripen the grapes. Pruning them off is not the right thing.
What can be done is to take every other shoot off the vine so as to
give each shoot double the space and leave the shoots alone. Hedging
the main shoot is better than cutting the laterals. I also agree with
him on leaf pulling and have experience that there is no difference in
taste if you leave the leaves. Proper spraying and growing positioning
will keep the friut fungus free.

Bob

On Jun 23, 12:46*pm, "Paul E. Lehmann" > wrote:
> shbailey wrote:
> > On Jun 19, 4:36*am, michael
> > > wrote:
> >> I am fairly new to growing my own vines in
> >> England,and am looking for a site to find out
> >> some of the details of pruning the vines during
> >> the summers growth.In paticular I wish to know
> >> how to deal with over vigorous growth,and
> >> whether to remove side shoots or laterals
> >> during the summers rapid growth.Cheers michael
>
> > Here is a link to a new article on pruning by
> > Lon Rombough, one of the foremost grape experts
> > in the U.S. not associated with a university
> > program. *He recommends caution in growing
> > season pruning.
>
> >http://www.bunchgrapes.com/pruning_grapes.html
>
> I wonder if the author has experience growing
> vines in climates that have excessive moisture.
> We can not control moisture in my region of the
> country and we use little or no fertilizer except
> if trace elements are missing or very low. *
>
> If hedging is not done, canes will grow to at
> least 20 feet in length. *Studies have shown that
> this will produce very poor quality wine. *
>
> I agree that hedging should be timed so that the
> new leaves and laterals are contributing to the
> ripening of the fruit. *I do not hedge after the
> first of August. *At this time the vines are
> putting energy into ripening the fruit.
>
> Leaf pulling in the fruit zone is necessary in my
> area (Mid Atlantic) to allow air circulation and
> allow spray to reach clusters. *Also a dense
> canopy offers a very hospitable hosts for fungi
> and also areas where spray can not reach. If you
> have yellow leaves in the interior of your
> canopy, then the probably reason is that they
> simply are not receiving enough sun.
>
> It should be noted that the leaves in the fruiting
> zone are not providing much in the way of
> carbohydrates to the vine by mid summer. *60 to
> 90 days after opening they are in old age and not
> contributing to anything except restriction of
> air flow and spray.
>
> Where I live, the viticulturists runs research
> farms that actually grow grapes so their work is
> NOT strictly academic but tested by field trials
> and experience.
>
> There has been and continues to be a difference of
> opinion on controlling vigor. *At one time Dr.
> Richard Smart promoted the idea of controlling
> vigor by having greater vine spacing and longer
> cordons. *This was tried and the result was very
> long cordons with very high vigor and excessive
> growth - in short - it did not work.
>
> It should be noted that what works for one in a
> certain area may not work for others in a
> different area or there may be differences
> between varieties in a given area.
>
> The best advice is to experiment and see what
> works best for you.