290 MISSOURI STATE HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



You will understand that in the limits of an ordinary essay it is im- 

 possible to treat this subject only in a general way ; there are dozens of 

 details relating to this particular branch of horticulture, any one of which, 

 if treated thoroughly, would wear out your patience, not to say anything 

 of the time required. Planting, cultivation, training, selection of varie- 

 ties, marketing, winter protection, grape rot and other diseases of the 

 grape, all these subjects must be thoroughly understood before one can 

 make a complete success of grape* growing. To do so, one must read 

 everything that comes to hand on the subject and hold fast to that which 

 is good. To the beginner would say, that in this as well as in everything 

 else, where there is a will there is a way. 



CAN GRAPE GROWING BE MADE PROFITABLE ? 



The answer to this depends so very much on the man who attempts 

 it, the policy he pursues, his stick-to-itiveness, etc., that it is hard to 

 say. This much can be said, all over one cent per pound that can be oli- 

 tained for grapes after taking out cast of package, freight and commission 

 will be found to be profit. If grapes are given half a chance, a well es- 

 tablished vineyard should produce about 10,000 pounds per acre, that is 

 a vineyard is as certain to produce that as the same acre would be to 

 produce forty bushels of corn, one year with another. The profits on the 

 crop would so very much depend on the quality of the fruit, time of rip- 

 ening, how it was handled, etc., etc., that, were two vineyards planted 

 side Ijy side, one might pay a net profit of from three to five hundred 

 dollars per acre, and the other not pay a net profit at all. And for that 

 matter this is not particularly different from almost any other crop; there 

 is only one right way to-do a thing, but about a thousand million wrong 

 ways, some worse than others. But any man with common industry and 

 common sense can surmount all the difficulties he is likely to encounter 

 in growing grapes, and will, likely, make a fair success of it. 



The lamented Josh Billings very wisely said " that it was better to 

 know little than to know so blamed much that wasn't so." So for fear I 

 may be giviiig you a lot of facts that isn't so, I give way to those better 

 qualified to speak. 



