of Rand Art and Tasle. 



179 



G-rape Culture — the Otlier 

 Side 



BV OLIVER TAYLOR. 



IF my experience or observation in Florida, 

 the past five years, are of any use, I wil- 

 lingly give them, though I am sorry to dampen 

 any one's bright hopes, in planting fruit trees, 

 as so many more are needed every year. 



I see many persons are hoping to grow 

 grapes in Florida for wine, or to ship the ripe 

 grapes. My constant care, the j^ast five years, 

 has been to learn what profit could be realized 

 in that way myself; but I have been forced 

 to the conclusion that Florida soil and climate 

 do not and cannot suit the requirements of 

 wine-making, or grape-growing for shipment 

 in the bunch. I tried twenty varieties at Fer- 

 nandina, eighteen feet drainage ; also fifteen 

 varieties at Sand Point, Indian River, some 

 fifteen feet drainage ; and here, some twelve 

 varieties, four to ten feet drainage. 



The leaf roller destroyed the foliage on 

 most all the kinds, except the Seuppernong 

 and Clinton. 



The fruit of all the grapes I have seen in 

 Florida show the efiect of too much water at 

 the roots, by not ripening uniformly in the 

 bunch, and this is the reason why it will not 

 be profitable to make wine. The heavy rains 

 that fall here, at any season of the year, may 

 at any time ruin the entire vineyard in a few 

 days. These rains are not confined to the 

 summer, as we often read they are, but occur 

 all through the year with as much irregularity 

 as at other places, some seasons being dry and 

 others wet ; and after a period of some two 

 years, a soil less than fifteen feet drainage, 

 receiving a fall of rain of twelve inches in 

 twenty-four hours, with not much fall to draw 

 ofi" the surplus, must of necessity ruin the 

 grape roots that had been induced, during the 

 dry seasons, to go deep for moisture. One 

 season was so dry here in May, that the soil 

 in a newly cleared field took fire, and burned 

 in many places to the depth of eight feet.(?) 



This irregularity of moisture will explain why 

 so many grape-vines die suddenly here in Flor- 

 ida after growing rapidly and bearing one or 

 two heavy crops. I hear of many such cases. 

 The few cases where the Malaga and other 

 grapes are grown near buildings, and thus pro- 

 tected, have induced many to think they would 

 succeed anywhere. 



The Seuppernong, of which so much is 

 hoped for in the South for wine, will not 

 answer for a wine grape unless some shrewd 

 Yankee will invent some milking process to 

 gather the grapes ; they do not ripen all at 

 once, even iu their small bunches. No one 

 can make it profitable to pick grapes at the 

 rate of five or six cents per quart for wine 

 making. Wine making from a wet country 

 has never, and can never be a success like it 

 is from drier soils and climates. 



Wine cellars in Florida must be almost, if 

 not quite, an impossibility, and even if ever 

 constructed, I think it would require a lot of 

 persuasion to induce any true Floridian.to ever 

 enter one during snake season. 



Notes oil Apples. 



EDITOR Horticulturist : — During an 

 extended observation of several years, we 

 have noticed a peculiar adaptation of va^'ieties 

 of apple trees to site and soil. We have found 

 the English Golden Russett succeeding best 

 on decidely dry soils and sunshiny slopes or 

 high land. Tops liable to winter kill when 

 trees are young, hardy when older. Not an 

 early bearer, but bears regularly and well with 

 age. A poor nursery, but good orchard tree. 



Talman Sweet chooses a strong, rich soil, 

 where it can make a good annual growth. 

 Young trees very liable to bark burst, and a 

 bad nursery tree on that account. Here the 

 tree is almost hardy — receives injury many 

 winters, but with strong soil and good culture 

 will recover. When in bearing is very pro- 

 ductive, trees from 18 to 25 years old bearing 

 12 to 30 bushels of apples. 



Fameuse thrives best on limestone, clay, 

 loam, or oak bush land, such as is found at 



