If your bunch grape or muscadine grape vines are left unpruned, they will produce a lot of vegetative growth and very few fruit. To maintain a balance between vegetative and fruiting growth, late February or early March is the time to prune your grape vines. Vines should be pruned every year to avoid alternate-year bearing and to make harvesting easier. If your bunch grape vine is vigorous, remove enough of last year’s growth to leave 50 to 60 buds. If your vine is weak, leave about 30 to 40 buds. On muscadine grapes, thin out bud clusters after a few years to prevent over production and small fruit size.