In the context of our study of wild relic grapevines that survive in the Western Negev via their growth on tall trees to gain access to sunlight, BOSTAN TREE researchers conducted an experimental pruning of two wild grapevine varieties in the winter of 2024-2025. The vines in question were found growing upwards, mainly on Sycamore and Ash (Tamarisk) trees, while expanding cordons and canes for tens of meters. The root system was also found to be quite developed and appears to extend down to groundwater several meters below the ground surface.

Despite the clear symbiotic advantages in the development and survival of the vines on the trees - including reducing water loss in the shade of the trees and utilizing groundwater and soil that is enriched by the microecology created under the trees - there is a noticeable difference in the timing of fruit ripening in different parts of the vine, and sometimes a noted difficulty for the vines to accumulate sugar in preparation for ripening. The difficulties in the development of wild vines are of course also derived from years wherein there was a complete lack of pruning and the subsequent loss of 'energy' due to the large distance between the vine trunks and the sunlit areas where the shoots and clusters develop. These phenomena were notable during the harvest we performed with the wild vines in the summer of 2024. It seems that these trends are mainly the result of the limited light exposure experienced by major portions of the vine.

In order to study these phenomena, in the winter and spring of 2025, we conducted a ‘pilot’ project that includes severing wild vines from the trees on which they are entwined, their subsequent thinning/pruning and spreading of the vines on a trellis to expose them to maximum light. In the first stage, we performed thinning to two wild vine varieties in the western Negev. The first is a vine with white fruit, probably the Dabouki variety, that grows in a national park area south of Ashkelon by climbing up sycamore trees. The second vine has small black fruit, probably of the Syriki variety, and grows on an Ash tree along the Shikma Stream in a natural area outside of urban development.

The first round of pruning and thinning was carried out at the end of February 2025, after a significantly cold week and just before the vines emerged from their winter dormancy. Working with the two vine varieties (Dabouki and Syriki), we constructed metal trellising about 10 m long and 2 m wide that extends out from the shade of the trees. Laying the vines out on the trellis, we thinned several cordons from each vine, trimming the tendrils and canes and leaving 2 or 3 buds per branch. We created a working protocol that calls for ongoing weekly monitoring of the development of the vines until ripening and harvesting. The protocol includes all the stages from thinning to harvesting, monitoring sugar levels, fruit quantity and dates of vine development, ripening and harvesting. The final stage of the pilot study will be harvesting the grapes on the monitored vines and wine production.​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​