Writer and nurseryman Lon Rombough 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. Annotation (c)2003 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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.<P>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.<P>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.<P>Rombough 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: <BR>-- pruning neglected or overgrown vines<BR>-- growing grapes on arbors and in greenhouses<BR>-- controlling animal pests in the vineyard<BR>-- bunch grapes and muscadine grapes for the South<BR>-- winter protection, and how to increase the hardiness of grapes<BR>-- creating your own new varieties

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.