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The Sc. Peter's Grape has a large oval berry, of a 

 deep black colour when ripe. Hie bunches are very 

 larrre, and make a fine appearance at the table, but 

 the juice is not rich, and it ripens late in the year. 

 The leaves of this ibrt are much more divided than 

 thofe of the other forts, approaching to thofe of the 

 Pardcy-lcaved Grape, fo it maybe diftinguilhed be- 

 fore the fruit is ripe. 



The Claret Grape, Bourdelais, or Verjuice Grape, 

 the Raiiin Grape, the ftriped Grape, and many other 

 fores which never come to perfedion here, are not 

 worthy of any place in gardens, unlefs for the fake 

 of variety •, for when they have the affiftance of heat 

 to bring them to maturity, their juice is harfh, and 

 without flavour, fo they Ihould not occupy the room 



of better fruit. 



All the forts of Grapes are propagated either from 

 layers or cuttings, the former of which is greatly prac- 

 tifed in England, but the latter is what I would recom- 

 mend, as being much preferable to the other; for the 

 roots of V^ines do not grow ftrong and Woody, as in 

 moft forts of trees, but are long, (lender, and pliable ; 

 therefore when they are taken out of the ground, they 

 feldom iVrike out any fibres from their weak roots, 

 which generally flirivel and dry ; fo that they rather 

 retard than help the plants in their growth, by pre- 

 venting the new fibres from pulliing out-, for which 

 reafon I liad ratlicr plant a good cutting than a rooted 

 plant, provided it be well chofenj and there is little 

 danger of its not growing. 

 ^ But as there are few perfons who triake choice of pro- 

 per cuttings, or at Icaft that form their cuttings right- 

 ly in England, fo it will be proper to give directions 

 for this in the firft place, before I proceed. You 



flioots 



thefe 



and well ripened of the laft yearns growth : 

 fhould be cut from the old Vine, juft below the place 



■odu<:ed, 

 Ijhe Wb years wood to each 

 imooth ; then you fliould < 

 the {hoots. 



Ihould be pru|ied 

 :he \ipper part of 

 rutting about 



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inches long. -When the j^ieceftr knot of<Dld wood 

 trut at both ends near tlie young fhoot, the cuttii 

 will refembte a little tnallet^ from wherjce Columd 

 eives the title of Malleolus to the Vine ciftriBgs;U^ 



r after iihrs ifiaiii^'ep, i*tere ^aii 1 



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^\Mt one taken fro'J 

 cut tliem into lengths of aboot a foot, and plant 

 them all, which is'very wrong •, for the upper part of 

 the {hoots are never fo well ripened as the lower, which 

 ■was produced early in the fpring, and l>as had the 

 whole fummer to harden, fo that tf they take root, 

 they never make fo good plants-^ for the wood of thofe 

 cuttings being fpongy and foft^ i'a<imits the moi{lure 

 too freely, "Whereby ^he plants will be luxuriant in 

 growth, but never fo fruitful as:l«;h whofe wood is 

 do{eriaful^fribi^ dompl^^ -^^^^^^^-^ 



"When the ctfttJft^s:«rethas prepared, if they are not 



^hen planted they {h^uld 'be 'placed with their lower 

 |>brt m ahe grotindin la dryfoll, skying fome litter up- 

 ^h their upper pate ^o present them from drying : 



- ^ r f 



- * .* - - 



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<: 



uati'dh 



cApfil 



fate them out, and wafh 



eontrafted 



Sand With their 



them for 



bein 



the 



, "ate defigned'to remain (whether againft: walls, or for 

 vftandards, ^for they {bould 

 •the cuttings {hottld be^ 



removed 



; :but in preparing the 



the 



which, if (Irong, and inclinable to wet, B by no 

 me^ns;proper for Grapes ; 'therefore where it fo hap- 



jw2hs, 'you Ihould cipen a Xt^ndh where the cuttings 

 are^fb'fee-t^krfteil, which fhoUld be ^fiHed^with lime 



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vel of the ground ; then you fhould open the holes at 

 about fix feet diftance from each other, putting one 

 good ftrong cutting into each hole, which lliould be 

 laid a little (loping, that their tops may incline to the 

 wall, but it muft be put in fo deep, as that the up- 

 permoll eye may be level with the furface of the 



i for when any part of the cutting is left above 



ground 



ground, as is the common method ufed by the Enn-- 

 lilh gardeners, mod of the buds attempt to {lioot ; 

 fo that the ftrength of the cuttings are divided to nou- 

 rilli fo many moots, which muft conlequently be 

 weaker than if only one of them grew; whereas on 

 the contrary, by burying the whole cutting in the 

 ground, the fapisall employed on one fingle flioot, 

 which confequently will be much ftronger ; befides, 

 the fun and air are apt to dry that part of the cutting 

 which remains above ground, and fo often prevents 

 their buds from Ihooting, 



Then having placed the cutting into the ground, you 

 fhould fill up the hole gently, pre{ring down the earth 

 with your foot clofe about it, and raife a litde hill juft 

 upon the top of the cutting, to cover .the upper eye 

 quite over, which will prevent it from drying; this 

 being done, there is nothing more necefiary, but to 

 keep the ground clear from weeds until the cuttings 

 begin to fiioot ; at which time you {liould look over 

 them carefully to rub off any fmall {hoots, if fuch 

 are produced, faftening only the firft main {libot to 

 the wall, which Ihould be conftantly trained up, as it 

 is extended in length, to prevent its breaking or hang- 

 ing down; you muft continue to look over thefe once 

 in about three weeks during the fummer feafon, con- 

 ftantly rubbing off all lateral ftioots which arc produ- 

 ced, leaving only the firft main flioot ; and be fure to 

 keep the ground conftantly clear from weeds, which, 

 if fuffered to grow, will exhauft the 

 ibil, and ftarve the cuttings. 

 The Michaelmas following, if your cuttings have 

 produced ftrong (hoots, you {hould prune them down 

 -to two eyes, which, though by fome people may be 

 thought too Ihort, yet I am fatisfied, from feveral 



to fee the beft method. -The reafon 



goodnels of tlie 



experiments, 



-for advifing the pranin 



i»han defemns'it till 



Vines at this feafon, rather 



ring is, becaufe the tender 

 parts of -thofe yotingfboots, if left on, are fubjeft to 

 decay in winter, for they are apt to grow late in the 

 year, fo the tops of their {hoots are tender, and the 

 early frofts will pinch them, and then they frequent- 

 quently are killed down a confiderable length, which 

 weakens their roots 

 in autumn. 



but if they are cut off early 

 the wounds will heal over before the 

 bad weather, and thereby the roots will be greatly 

 ftrengthened. ■ ' ? ^^ -, ^ 



In the fpring, after the cold weather is paft, you 

 muft gently dig up the borders to loofen the earth -, 

 but yoxi muft be very careful in doing this, not to 

 injure the roots of your Vines ; you (holild alfo raifc 

 the earth up to the ftems of the plants, fo as to cover 

 the old wood, but not fo deep as to cover either of 

 the eyes ^f the laft year's wood. After this they will 

 ^require no farther care until they begin to {hoot, when 

 you &ould look over them carefully, to rub off all 

 weak dangling ihoots, leaving no more than one or 

 'two fhoots, which arc produced from the eyes of the 

 iaft year's wood, Y^hich fhould be faftened to the 

 waill ; and fo from this, until the Vines have done 



diftend | fhooting, you (hould look them over once m three 



weeks or a month, to rub off all lateral Ihoots as they 

 are produced, and to-faften the main {hoots to the 

 wall as they are extended in length, which muft not 

 be {hortened before the middle or latter end of July^ 

 when it will be proper to nip off their tops, which 

 will ftrengthen the loWer eyes ; and during the fum- 

 mer feafon, you muft conftantly keep the ground 

 clear from weeds ; nor {hould you permit any fort of 

 'pkntsto grow near the Vines, -which would not only 

 Tobthemofnourifcment, but {hade the lower part of 



ifubbifti, ^tht'bafter to drain 'dff the moifture ; -ihen } -theihoots, and theifebjr prevent then* ripening, which 

 raife the border with fre{h -light earth dboUt two^feet *will not only caufe their wood to be fpongy and luxu- 



thick, f« that it may be at leaft a foot above the le- 1 rkilt, but render it'-kfs fruitful. 



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