How to Grow Grapes With Gibberellic Acid

Growing grapes to eat fresh from the vine or enjoy as home-made wine can be a frustrating experience. The grapes may be too crowded, too small, have too many seeds or ripen unevenly. Gibberellic acid is a natural hormone produced by plants, first discovered in a fungus on rice stalks by Japanese researchers. Many plants react to gibberellic acid with increased growth and early flowering. In the case of grapes, the flower clusters spread out, allowing larger grapes that ripen evenly.

Gibberellic acid concentrate
Eyedropper marked in grams and ounces
Measuring cup
2-gallon bucket
Funnel
Large spray bottle

Instructions

- 1
  Measure the gibberellic acid concentrate and add it to a gallon of water according to the manufacturer's instructions. Pour the mixture into a large spray bottle with a funnel. Different varieties of grapes require different concentrations of gibberellic acid; read the manufacturer's instructions carefully.
- 2
  Apply the spray to the grape flower clusters before they bloom, wetting the buds thoroughly. This treatment makes the clusters elongate so they are not as crowded and the grapes will grow larger.
- 3
  Reapply the gibberellic acid and water solution to the flower clusters while in bloom, following the manufacturer's instructions. Spray one to four times, between one and seven days apart, depending on the length of the blooming period. The second spraying thins out the blossoms, making room in each cluster for larger grapes.
- 4
  Spray the new grapes with the diluted gibberellic acid solution when the grapes are between 1/8- and 1/4-inch in diameter. This spraying encourages the grapes to grow larger and ripen evenly.

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