Cordon pruning leaves a permanent horizontal extension of the trunk in place year after year. Cordons can be decades old and achieve diameters of several inches or more. The cordons themselves do not usually produce fruitful shoots. The fruitful shoots come from spur positions located along the cordon.

Do canes turn into cordons?

In very general terms, the process of establishing a new cordon on spur-pruned vines is to find a strong cane from the previous growing season and tie it onto the trellis wire so that it will become the new cordon.

What is a kniffin system?

Definition of Kniffin system : a system or method of training grapevines whereby a trunk is carried to the upper of two braced supporting wires along which the annually renewed fruiting canes are tied and from which the bearing branches are allowed to hang down.