210 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF THE 



not reach as high as either of the other plats, so they escaped 

 untouched. A severe drouth of eight weeks following imme- 

 diately, the vines on the lower plat made no ripe wood that 

 year, and a few died. Just before the rain came, and in my 

 absence, the two upper j)lats were hoed. Upon the terraces 

 the soil was so arranged around the vines as to form shallow 

 basins to catch the water, while the other plat was left even 

 and smooth. When the rain came it all ran off from the 

 unterraced side-hill like water from a duck. This fault in 

 hoeing was corrected, but it was some time before another 

 rain. Some of the vines died, and all were so stunted that 

 they did not do well that year. The next spring these and 

 the lower plat all started from the root. Of the 33 Delawares, 

 12 were so injured by cut-worms that they formed no ripe 

 wood that year, and started from the roots next sirring. At 

 the close of that season I had GO lonas, 21 Delawares, and 11 

 Israellas uninjured from any cause, with canes from 7 to 14 

 feet long, of well-ripened wood. The next spring, 1869, all 

 kinds started vigorously, as did 650 more, obtained of Mr. 

 Perry, and set that spring, composed of Delawares, lonas, 

 Hartfords, Adirondacks, Sogers' Hybrids Nos. 4, 15, and 19, 

 with some others sent to me for trial. 



The lonas, Israellas and Delawares on the terraces bore some 

 fruit that year. The Delawares and Israellas ripened fully, and 

 lona nearly so. About the 20th of October winter came upon 

 us without previous notice. The leaves upon the lonas were 

 as green as in midsummer, and they were all so injured that 

 they were late in starting in the spring of 1870, and conse- 

 quently bore but little fruit. 



The lower plat gave about the same amount of fruit in '70 

 that the terraces did in '69. The Concords did better than the 

 lower plat in fruit, but not in growth. The 11 Israellas on 

 the terrace gave 25 pounds, and the 21 Delawares gave 102 

 pounds. 



The 650 vines set in the spring of 1869 were set in the same 



