Why Are Roses Planted with Grape Vines?

In many wine regions all over the world, it is common to see rosebushes planted along the perimeter of vineyards. In addition to adding beauty to the vineyard, there are several practical reasons why vineyards choose to implement this practice.

1. Compatability

The first reason that roses and grapes are often grown together are that they are extremely compatible. They have very similar irrigation, sun, and fertilizer needs and they tend to do well in similar soils and climates. This allows grape growers to plant rosebushes on the ends of their rows and they will grow without having to make any special growing adjustments. They additional cost for planting and maintaining roses with grape vines is minimal, so there is almost no downside to growers.

2. Beneficial Insects

Roses can provide a great habitat for beneficial insects that prey on vineyard pests. They can also attract bees and other beneficial insects which can help improve biodiversity on the vineyard, which generally has positive impacts on reducing harmful pest populations.

3. Early Disease Detection (maybe…)

One reason that many grape growers list for planting rosebushes is that they can act as an early disease detection system, like a canary in a coal mine. Roses, like grapes, are susceptible to Powdery Mildew, a white, powdery fungus that grows on leaves and can decrease yields and fruit quality. Powdery Mildew is best controlled by preventative fungicide sprays, and often roses will show symptoms of Powdery Mildew before the Grapes, giving growers time to apply preventative sprays.

One important thing to point out is that the Powdery Mildew that affect roses and the Powdery Mildew that affect grapes are two distinct species of fungi. Powdery Mildew on Rose will not infect Grapes, or vice-versa, and the presence of one does not influence the other. The optimum environmental conditions for infection of both species are very similar, which is why they are often observed together in the same field. From this perspective, roses as an early detection system might be helpful in some cases, however this should not be relied upon for Powdery Mildew prevention. Using weather data to model Powdery Mildew risk is a much more reliable way to predict and prevent outbreaks before they occur. The Pest Prophet app is a helpful tool that makes this easy to track for any grower.

4. Aesthetic Reasons

There is one benefit of planting rosebushes in the vineyard that  benefits workers and visitors is that they’re beautiful and can add pleasing color to the vineyard. This can serve a practical purpose: roses can be planted in different flowering colors to help easily distinguish between varietals, or other growing blocks in the vineyard. There is virtually no downside to planting roses in the vineyard, so why not add some beauty?