GRAPES AND GEAPE CULTUEE. 



anytliing extraordinary; or lias he even obtained as much, of better quality, in the 

 same time, and with his vines in any better order for futurity, than I have recorded 

 above, and this without any such nuisance. lie speaks of the great number of pre- 

 miums that have been awarded to him ; but is it that he has produced something- 

 very wonderful from time to time, or is it rather because he has not had much superi- 

 ority to contend against. In a former article, {^Horticulturist^ 1852, p. 110,) he says 

 that his " vines were not allowed to bear a bunch till the fourth year after planting," 

 and that at the end of eight years he has " never been able to ripen perfectly more 

 than nine or ten bunches on any single vine." Now this does not argue much for 

 the benefit to be derived from such material as he advocates. 



With regard to Mr. McKay's example, he jumps at a conclusion rather too fast, 

 without having proved much in favor of the argument. In the first place he has a 

 gravelly bottom — the one above all others most suited to the Grape vine, as admit- 

 ting of good drainage; his soil is particularly well worked, with some manure added 

 where the roots could take hold of it, which would enable the vines to luxuriate finely 

 for a length of time, until the fleshy part of his oxen was all decayed into mold ; and 

 as all the lumps only covered a part of the whole area, the superabundant water could 

 drain away, and with his good culture the soil would remain porous ; therefore the 

 gases would be taken up by his fresh base soil, which would render it more fertile. 

 This is a very different circumstance to what is advocated with respect to vine borders; 

 and when Mr. McKay has seen as much mischief done as I have, by the use of these 

 materials, he will not be so sanguine about fresh carrion. I do not deny the good 

 properties of animal manures, when thoroughly decomposed, and in reasonable quan- 

 tity, but do protest against gorging the ground with them in a fresh state ; for no root 

 can exist in contact with such matter : and as barn-yard manure will answer the same 

 purpose, and is generally much more convenient and cheap, where is the advantage ? 



With respect to the cultivation of hardy Grapes, there is no doubt but what if the 

 same attention were bestowed on them as there is on the exotic, they would be equal 

 in luxuriance to the latter, and might be made to produce fruit of ftir better quality 

 than is generally seen ; and your correspondent in this instance has only shown what 

 good culture will do : and further, if he will use good barn-yard manure freely, tviih 

 the same c/ood tillage which he has heretofore practiced, I am very much mistaken if, 

 after a " patient trial," he will not then admit that it is not so indispensably requisite 

 to use dead oxen or any other animal flesh. 



The presumption respecting the cure of mildew by cutting off the top roots, is so 

 devoid of physiological fact, and so opposed to experience and observation, that I 

 must own my incompetency to understand it. Is it not more likely that the healthi- 

 ness of his vines wards it oft", as there are plenty of examples to prove this probability ? 



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