NOVEMBER. 337 



the house. As by this system the two-years old rods have to be cut 

 away in the autumn, young shoots must be trained up during the 

 summer, in order to be ready to replace them ; and these, in their turn, 

 are cut out in the autumn of the following season, and are then replaced 

 by shoots of that summer's growth. Long-rod training in its simplest 

 form is accomplished as follows : — 



" Plant the Vine, train up one shoot, and when the leaves have fallen 

 prune it back to the bottom of the rafter. In the next season train up 

 only two of the best shoots, and when they have completed that season's 

 growth cut one of them back to two eyes at the base. The shoot left 

 at greatest length will likely bear some fruit ; the other, cut back to 

 two eyes, will produce two shoots. In autumn the one which bore the 

 fruit should be cut out ; one of the two young shoots cut back according 

 to its strength, will supply its place, and the other young shoot must be 

 cut back to two eyes. ' This mode of pruning and training is appli- 

 cable principally to those houses where the rafters only are to be 

 occupied by the Vine, as over the Pine-pit, or where other crops are 

 cultivated in the body of the house ; but when it is intended to occupy 

 the whole roof, this system may still be adopted, by extending the Vine 

 on each side of the rafter, till it meets that from the adjoining one ; or, 

 the Vine may be divided at the bottom of the rafter, on its first 

 training, and formed with two principals on each side, making four 

 principals to each Vine. If, however, the Vines should consist of the 

 larger fruited class, such as Muscat of Alexandria, Black Hamburgh, 

 or Syrian, &c, one principal on the rafter, and one on each side will be 

 much better than more- It may likewise be necessary to extend this 

 system still further, where the house is large, and has a great length of 

 rafter, which may be done by forming a second series one- half the way 

 up the rafter.' — Lindleys Guide, p. 224. 



" In carrying up a stem, to furnish shoots for the upper part of the 

 house, that stem will be naked between the parts where shoots proceed 

 to furnish the lower part. To these naked portions of stem the young 

 wood of the lower series may be closely trained, for naked wood does 

 not require light. 



" Short-rod System. — Instead of training rods at considerable length 

 for bearing, some prefer short rods, treating them on the same system 

 of cutting out the shoots which have borne, and supplying their places 

 with young shoots trained up for that purpose. 



" Mr. Roberts' selects buds for the origin of spurs alternately on 

 each side of a shoot which is allowed to progress to the top of the house, 

 and he removes the other buds on each side, but so that those retained 

 on one side may be situated about half-way between those left on the 

 other. About two-thirds of the buds are thus removed ; those retained 

 being situated alternately on the right and left sides of the shoot. The 

 operation of disbudding is performed when the wood is nearly mature, 

 by cutting out the bud in the axil of the leaf, taking care not to injure 

 the latter. The buds left push, and generally bear in the following 

 season ; in summer they are stopped one joint beyond the fruit, and in 

 autumn are cut back to two eyes. These produce two shoots, one of 

 which is allowed to bear fruit, and the other is not. At the autumn 



VOL. XIII., NO. CXLIII. Z 



