Why are the leaves on my baby grape vine turning brown?

Question

Last June I bought a ‘Chardonnay’ grape as a foot long stick with roots. I planted it in a large dust bin, with good drainage and a light application of lime to the potting soil. I put the dust bin in the conservatory (I live on the west coast of Scotland) and for the first summer the vine put out leaves and grew a bit of stem. Over the winter it went sort of dormant, the leaves dried up and mostly fell off and I thought all was well. Come the spring, the vine grew a good 8 inches and there was a great crop of tender green leaves. We had a hot spell of a couple of months this spring and I provided shade for the grape, and kept the soil reasonably moist. Then the newest leaves began to turn brown, then the larger ones. I thought it might be too hot for the grape and moved it to a sheltered corner outside. The leaves continued to turn brown and fall off, and now a few of the leaf stems and tiny twigs are following suit. A few small new leaves are emerging, but they turn brown almost as fast as they grow. The plant is not a vigourous grower.

I have never grown a grape before. What am I doing wrong?

Answer 1

It sounds like a fungus is attacking the plant. I would treat it with a fungicide and that should clear it up.