![]() Once established, well-tended grapevines can be productive for 40 years or more. A mature and well-maintained grapevine can produce up to 20 pounds or more of fruit per year. In addition, grapevines can be ornamental and valuable as shade or screen plants in the home landscape when trained on a trellis or arbor (Figure 1). The Joy of the Grape Arbor - Dr.Grapes are an excellent fruit for fresh use or processing into jam, jelly, juice, pie or wine.The Tomatoes Are Coming, The Tomatoes Are Coming - Dr.Your Hair Should Be Like Regis Philbin’s-Dr.It Was a Hot Day and Elvis Popped Up - Dr.What Was It About Flying a Kite? - Dr.What Should I Have Done? What Would You Do? Dr.Honesty and Integrity So Necessary Today.Under the arbor, with the security of family, lay the essence of my childhood. If I close my eyes, I can smell the grapes and hear the chatter. Because my third-floor bedroom overlooked the arbor, I was lulled to sleep by the laughter and steady hum of the voices below.Īs I reflect on those wonderful years, I realize that the arbor symbolized good times, family and friends, comfort, and belonging. Perhaps the epitome was when I saw Grandpa slice a peach into his glass, pour the wine and slurp it all with love.Įarly evening get-togethers lingered late into the night, long after the children were sent to bed. As we sat, I could not help but notice how happy our family seemed, and how much they enjoyed their food. ![]() Grandma centered a long table and draped it with a flowered tablecloth. The arbor was the center of activity eating, of course, was one of them. "Ed-a-Wood, you tell-a to Sho Van gopp e man-jah," which I promptly did, and which resulted in one of his few moves. When it was time for his lunch, my grandmother would ask me to summon him in Italian, for that was all he understood. Sho did little more than sit and sleep under the arbor. At noon, there was my great-grandfather who sported the enigmatic name, Sho. That retreat was the first thing I saw when I rounded the corner. I loved the arbor because I was certain that someone would be sitting under it when I jaunted down that driveway, either at lunchtime or at the end of the school day. It was under the arbor that I lost my first and only boxing match. ![]() The grapes were wonderful to eat directly from the vine or to throw during our grape fights. My guess is that he supplemented those grapes with boxes he bought at the farmer’s market to make enough wine to last the winter. Late in the summer, my grandfather picked them and carried them with care to his cellar wine press. GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE - SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLAST Bunches of bluish-purple grapes hung in succulent clusters everywhere. Grandpa attached two benches to the poles along the longest lengths. Radiant streaks of sunlight floated through. The vines covered the rectangular wooden crossbars creating the rooftop that shaded us on sweltering summer days. Wooden poles with the roots of the vines starting at each corner and twisting to the top, anchored the arbor. In the rear yard was the grape arbor, situated at the end of the long driveway, and separated by a tall hedge from my grandfather’s vegetable garden. Our deep brown and ivory three-decker house was located on Wealth Avenue in a congested middle-class neighborhood in Providence. ![]() I’m not sure my grandfather harvested enough grapes from his small arbor to produce the bottles that sprang from his cellar press, but the little dynamo arbor delivered enough for us to enjoy in other ways. ![]()
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