178 Wisconsin State Horticultural Society. 



Mr. Hofer — I told vou on the start, there are certain rules and 

 principles which should be observed in raising grapes, whether you 

 raise them on trellises or on bows. If you do not observe them, 

 you can raise poor grapes, but you cannot raise as good a quality 

 of fruit as I can on the single pole system. Grapes want the sun 

 and the air. 



Mr. Plumb — We shall dissent from you in regard to the temper- 

 ature which buds will endure. Two years ago, our grapes on the 

 trellis went through from twenty-five to thirty degrees below zero, 

 repeatedly, and I have shown a great many people grape vines that 

 stood on the trellis on the top of the hill, all through that low tem- 

 perature, open to all the inclemencies of the weather. 



Mr. Hofer — This (referring to the vine used in illustrating) went 

 through twenty-six degrees, and I will cut it; when they are win- 

 ter-killed, there is a little black spot in the middle; if it is green, 

 it is good (Mr. Hofer then cut the vine). It is green; it would have 

 grown. That is a kind that would stand any degree of cold; if it 

 "were a Hartford or a Muscatine, you would find it black; it depends 

 a good deal on how the wood is; a strong cane can stand more cold 

 than a weak one. If any of you want my book on grape-growing, 

 you can write to me, and I will send it to you at any time. 



CONDITIONS OF HARDINESS. 



J. C. PLUMB, Milton. 



" Hardiness " is a relative term, based upon local conditions of 

 soil, elevation, aspect, moisture, heat and cold, as well as the gen- 

 eral quality of vital force in the tree. Therefore we can never 

 judge correctly of the hardiness of a variety without knowing all 

 these local conditions; and the aim of this paper is to point out, 

 in a simple way, the apparent conditions which go to make up the 

 essential quality of " hardiness." To illustrate, Downing says of 

 the Grimes' Golden Pippin, that it is esteemed for its hardiness in 

 its native state; and Judge Knapp says of the banana and orange, 

 that they are eminently hardy with him in Florida; but we do not 

 take it for granted that we can grow either the apple named or the 

 orange in our state with success. And so we must have a new stand- 



