336 



THE GARDENERS MONTHLY. 



[November, 



of late years have not sufficient ventilation, the 

 old style of houses being far better oflf in this re- 

 spect, especially where early fruit is not desired, 

 and also when the fruit is to be kept on the vine 

 for daily use. The varying shade cast by the 

 deep rafters and woodwork kept both foliage and 

 fruit in better condition than by the modern 

 fixed roof style of house. 



Temperature. — About 50° Fahrenheit is enough 

 to begin with at night in the first stage of forcing, 

 and it should not pass 55° morning and night, 

 till all the buds have sprung. This is a point of 

 very. great importance in the forcing of grapes. 

 If the forcing be commenced with a dash, as 

 some fast young grape growers term it, and a 

 high temperature be kept up from the beginning, 

 the chance is that not more than one half the 

 spurs will start. It is best to imitate nature as 

 near as possible in all horticultural operations, 

 and the further we deviate from her laws the 

 quicker will retribution come. After the buds are 

 well started, the heat must be gradually raised 

 to 60°, 65° and 70°, to remain at that till the 

 bloom opens. This rise from 50° tg 7u° cannot 

 be effected in less time than two weeks. As the 

 bloom opens the vines should be jarred or shaken 

 in the morning to help impregnation, and the 

 Muscats should have a portion, say an inch or 

 so, of the extremity of the bunches cut off", as 

 this point hardly sets well, and if taken off" while 

 the cluster is in an embryo state will appear 

 more natural. 



Watering and Syringing. — Syringing must be 

 done frequently from the start till the vines com- 

 mence to bloom, but watering must be attended 

 to at least twice a week, and then no homceo 

 pathic dose, but a thorough soaking, and along 

 till the grapes begin to color. Syringing must 

 be performed every evening in good weather, 

 until the grapes begin to swell off" for coloring. 



Thinning. — Thinning the bunches, and also the 

 berries, is very important, as on severe thinning 

 depends, in a great degree, color, size, and with 

 good ventilation, flavor also. 



Insects and Diseases. — In the grapery, even with 

 fair attention, we are often troubled with red 

 spider; and there, also, we often find the mealy 

 bug in all his glory. What brings him there? 

 Some enthusiastic gardener who wants to grow 

 a stove plant or orchid and has no other place 

 for them. We also find green fly and thrip. All 

 of these can easily be destroyed by syringing 

 with the following mixture: 1 gill kerosene, 2 

 lbs. whale oil soap, 1 lb. tobacco soap, 80 gall. 



water. This will be more effective for the red 

 spider than sulithur or its fumes, and also for 

 mealy bugs. Funngations of tobacco are effectual 

 for destroying both the aphis and thiip. 



Dry rot of the roots shows itself by the flag- 

 ging of the young leaves when exposed to the 

 sun, and shanking and shrivel, and all others, 

 ()rincipally arise from severe summer pruning 

 and over-cropping. I think if the vines were 

 planted farther apart than they usually are, say 

 six feet, there would be some chance for the 

 plant to bear heavy crops, by reason of having 

 plenty of foliage and healthy roots to carry on the 

 circulation rapidly, and so draw and elabf)rate 

 sufficient nutriment to sustain it. Naturally a 

 plant extends its roots in proportion to its 

 branches. As this cannot be very easily done in 

 the gra{)ery, we ought to give the vines at least 

 some chance for existence, either by cropping 

 lightly or in some other way. 



Varieties to Plant. — The Muscat of Alexandria, 

 Black Hamlturgh and Black Prince, for produc- 

 tiveness, flavor and other good qualities, stand 

 highest in the list of varieties; in fact, most of 

 the others with high sounding names are hardly 

 worth culture, many of our native varieties 

 being superior in every respect. 



Pruning —I prefer the spur system to any 

 others, and should say the double spur. By this 

 mode we have always young wood which bears 

 fruit but once, and is then cut out and replaced 

 by a shoot of the same age which has not been 

 allowed to bear fruit. 



I am afraid that I have exhausted your pa- 

 tience, but being a lover of the grape and its cul- 

 ture, will, I hope be accepted, as some excuse for 

 this prolix paper. — Read be/ore the New York 

 Horticultur'il Society. 



EDITORIAL NOTES. 



New White Grapes.— There was a time when 

 the editor welcomed the white grape. There 

 were not many good ones, and it was safe to 

 off'er a comparative opinion. Now it is reversed. 

 They are so numerous that he dare not under- 

 take to describe one, and say wherein it differs 

 from some one he has already seen. All that 

 can be done by the editor now is to record their 

 appearance and leave them to fight out the battle 

 for supremacy among themselves. 



One of the latest of these brilliant appear- 

 ances in the viti-cultural sky, is the Stelton, 



