The Best Grape Plants for an L-Shaped Area

Trellis Systems

• Because grapes need full sun, they are most often grown in locations with southern exposure and trained to grow so that as many leaves as possible receive sunlight. In order to maximize grapevines' exposure to sunlight, the plants can be trained on a trellis that separates the vines onto two wires so that leaves spread over a greater area. This technique is particularly important on an L-shaped trellis, where some grapevines may be shadowed by the grapevines growing next to them. Even when grapes are trained on an L-shaped trellis, the best grapes to use are hardy and disease-resistant varieties.

Seedless Grapes

• Several grapevine varieties that produce seedless bunch grapes grown for table eating are suitable for an L-shaped area. They include the cultivars "Venus" (Vitis "Venus"), hardy in USDA zones 5 through 8a, and "Mars" (Vitis "Mars"), hardy in USDA zones 5 through 8. "Venus" bears bunches of medium to large blue fruits and is considered fairly hardy. "Mars" is another hardy species, and it has a low susceptibility to diseases. "Venus" fruits early in the season, and "Mars" is an early- to mid-season variety.

White Wine Grapes

• Certain grape varieties' fruits commonly grown for white wine production also are eaten fresh. The fruits of the cultivar "Edelweiss" (Vitis "Edelweiss"), hardy in USDA zones 4 through 8, have a strong flavor unless picked promptly after they start to ripen. "Seyval" (Vitis "Seyval") is hardy in USDA zones 5 through 9 and is considered a premier white wine variety. Both of these grapes can perform well in a L-shaped area but should be mulched in winter to protect their roots.

Red Wine Grapes

• Some grapes grown for their fruits' use in making red wine, jelly and juice can do well on an L-shaped arbor. "Norton" (Vitis aestivalis "Norton"), a pigeon grape variety, produces good-quality wine and is disease-resistant. Pigeon grapes are hardy in USDA zones 7 through 9. "De Chaunac" (Vitis "De Chaunac") is hardy in USDA zones 5 through 8a and bears heavy fruit yields. Its clusters are so large that they may need to be thinned to provide room for the fruits to mature.