Page 12 



BETTER FRUIT 



The Care and Culture of Vineyards 



By Daniel Prowant, a Successful Grower 



"W/'HILE grapes seem to prefer a rather 

 VV high location, and one that will sur- 

 face drain readih', ihcy may be success- 

 fully grown on almost any soil that can be 

 drained properly by means of tile. They do 

 not require a soil as high in fertility as 

 some of the other fruit crops, but they will 

 repay good care. Cultivation must be fre- 

 quent enough to keep out all weeds and 

 grass, and to keep the soil loose enough to 

 prevent the escape of . moisture in dry 

 weather. They are usually a fairly profit- 

 able crop, and in some sections of the coun- 

 try where the land is so broken as to make 

 general farming difficult they are the most 

 profitable crop that can be grown. 



Our own vineyard is set in rows six feet 

 wide, the vines six feet apart in the rows. 

 Cedar fence posts are placed in the rows 

 twenty feet apart, and wires are stretched 

 for them to vine on. The wires should not 

 be stapled to the posts, as the weight of the 

 vines will pull out the staples, and make 

 an unsatisfactory job. The best plan is to 

 bore one-half inch holes entirely through 

 the posts, and pass the wires through the 

 holes. The end posts must either be se- 

 curely braced or set in concrete to prevent 

 the wires from sagging. Three wires for 

 each row is sufficient, but they should be 

 pretty heavy, as they may be broken when 

 laden with fruit, and should be stretched 

 as tight as possible. This method is quite 

 satisfactory in every way except that it will 

 onl)' permit cultivating in one direction. 



ANOTHER plan of growing th.u 1 have 

 seen in use that will permit cultivat- 

 ing in both directions, is to set three small 

 posts, preferably steel posts, in the form oi 

 a triangle, with the vine in the center. 

 Three or four wires are stretched around 

 this triangle to support the vine growth. 

 The only objection to this plan is that the 



grapes are a little more difficult to get at by 

 the pickers. 



With us grapes are not bothered to any 

 extent by insect pests, but such fungus 

 diseases as rust, rot and mildew are more 

 or less common. This can be taken care of 

 by spraying at regular intervals with some 

 good fungicide. Bordeaux mixture is used 

 with good results for this purpose, or a 

 combined insecticide and fungicide may be 

 used if there is need for it. Insecticides 

 should not be used after the fruit has set, 

 as almost all of them are poisonous to man- 

 kind as well as to insects. 



October, 1921 



Pruning the vines should take place once 

 annually, and the work must be done while 

 the vines arc dormant. We prefer to do 

 this while the weather is quite cold, as the 

 vines often lose much sap if pruned when 

 not frozen. There is more danger of the 

 average grower not pruning enough than 

 there is of pruning too much. All of last 

 year's growth should be cut away except 

 two buds on each branch of the vine, and 

 not more than three or four branches al- 

 lowed to remain. This looks like making a 

 slaughter of the vineyard at the time, it 

 is true, but as the grapes are always pro- 

 duced on new vine growth the fruit will 

 be much larger if the roots are not com- 

 pelled to support too large a growth of 

 \'ines. 



Ridley, Houlding & Co. 



COVENT GARDEN. LONDON 



WE ARE 



Specialists in 

 Apples and Pears 



CABLE ADDRESS: BOTANIZING. LONDON 



Codes: A. B. C. 5th Edition and Modern Economy 



"CAR0 



WRAPPERS 



PROTECTS 



"Caro" Protects-"Caro" Prolongs the Life of Fruit-Why? 



CHEMICALLY TREATED, "Caro" from DessiCARE (to dry up) 

 FRUIT MATURITY is retarded by cold or refrigeration and hastened by heat or atmospheric exposure. 

 The soft fibrous silk-like texture of "Caro" provides just sufficient ventilation to retard the ripening process. 

 FRUIT DECOMPOSITION starts from a bruise which opens tiny holes and permits juice to escape and BACTERIA to 

 enter. "Caro" clings closely and dries up the escaping juice. "Caro" ingredients harden the spot, kill the BACTERIA, 

 arrest the decomposition. „ _ . ^ ,.r . 



United State. Distributors, AMERICAN SALES AGENCIES CO.. 112 Market Street, San Francisco, C«lifornui 



