Pergola Trellising
The pergola trellising system, known as tendone in Italian, was first used by the Romans and is still widely applied in the cultivation of table grapes. Especially popular in the regions of Puglia and Sicily, pergola trellising is suitable as a vine training method in hot, arid climates. The vines are trained above head height and the grapes hang down under the shade of the canopy. Vines are planted at a density of 1,600 units per hectare. A clear disadvantage of pergola trellising is the position of the arms which makes harvesting difficult. This is compounded by the overhead design of the pergola which makes it difficult to use a modern tractor. A variant of the pergola training method is the Smart Dyson split canopy where cordons are pruned so that alternate spurs point upwards and down, making it easier to harvest the grapes mechanically.

Spur Pruning
Spur pruning, also known as cordon pruning, creates stationary cordons that are used year after year. The cane is left permanently attached to the fruiting wire so that it becomes a permanent cordon. The fruitful shoots come from spur positions located along the cordon. Cordon systems are easier to prune and produce higher quality grapes due to lower yields.

The Geneva Double Curtain
The Geneva Double Curtain (GDC) is a widespread vine training system in the regions of Emilia Romagna and Veneto. The GDC is an excellent system for large sized vines. It increases the fruit’s exposure to sunlight and commonly results in higher yields than can be achieved with simple cordon systems.