Taiwan is located in tropical and subtropical region with a relatively long growing season. Using pruning and budforcing agent budbreak of a grapevine can be successfully induced in summer and thus a grapevine being harvested twice a year. The relation between water status and budbreak from normal dormancy season has been established. However, the relation between chemical forcing and water status in grapevine was not clearly documented. In this study, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was used to investigate the change of water status in the compound bud of ‘Kyoho’ grapvines after chemical forcing in summer and in winter. Potted, 5-year-old, self rooted ‘Kyoho’ grapevines were pruned and then forced with 2-chloro-ethanol either in summer or in winter. Free water content of the compound bud and adjacent cane tissue after forcing was non-invasively evaluated with a MRI system equipped with a 120-mm gradient insert and configured to 70-mm RF volume coil. Bud developing stages after forcing were visually recorded and shoot growth was measured. Chemical forcing after summer pruning improved uniformity of budbreak and shoot growth but had little effect on free water status in the bud and adjacent cane tissue. Free water content in buds with or without forcing all increased five days after treatments. On the other hand, chemical forcing after dormant pruning quickly increased free water content in the bud and the adjacent phloem tissue, and advanced budbreak as well as young shoot growth. It appears that free water status is a good index for dormancy release in grapevines but is insufficient to explain the mechanism of chemical forcing.