4^4 Journal of Agriculture. [8 July, 1908. 



FOURTH PROGRESS REPORT ON VITICULTURE IX 



EUROPE. 



{Continued from fage 363.) 

 F. dc Castella, Govcrnmoit Viticuliurist. 



Keconstitution in Spain (coniinueci). 

 The Malaga District. 



From Jerez I proceeded bv rail to ■Malaga, where I arrived on the 

 30th November. Malaga is famed for its wine, which has long been well 

 and favorably known, but even more so for its raisins. The word 

 " Malaga " has become synonymous with all that is best in the way of 

 dessert raisins. It is from ]\Ialaga that we imported the Gordo Blanco 

 Muscatel vine which yields the raw material for our own rising raisin 

 industry. Malaga itself is a prosperous seaport town of some 125,000 

 inhabitants situated at the mouth of the Guadalmedina and near the point 

 where the Guadalhorce empties itself into the Mediterranean. On either 

 side of the latter river stretch, wide fertile river flats wdiich constitute what 

 is known as the Vega (plain) de Malaga. 



This fertile plain is devoted to general agriculture, chiefly sugar produc- 

 ing plants, among which beet root occupies first place, but in the mild 

 climate of this part of Spain even the sugar cane can be, and is cultivated 

 on a fairly large scale. It is in the Vega and on its borders, that the raisin 

 vineyards are situated, wdne being made on the poor stony hillsides. Viti- 

 culture is thus divided into two main branches, but in some of the neigh- 

 bouring villages a third form is to be met with, as large quantities of 

 fresh grapes are shipped from them packed in granulated cork. Raisin 

 production is now-a-days the chief viticultural industry of Malaga, it 

 having overtaken winegrowing, which never recovered from the blow it 

 received when the vineyards fell a prey to phylloxera. 



In its relation to the insect this district presents some interesting fea- 

 tures. It is one of the districts of Spain where phylloxera was first dis- 

 covered. It was first found in the vineyard of La Indiana in the parish 

 of Moclinejo, near the centre of the wine producing region, in the year 1878. 

 Its soils are very varied, several quite distinct types being met with at 

 short distances from one another. The wdne producing region was the 

 scene of disastrous failure in the way of reconstitution, a failure which 

 should serve as an object lesson, showing as it does the danger of attempt- 

 ing to use resistant stocks without due attention to considerations of adap- 

 tation and affinity and without suitable preliminary preparation of the soil. 



Before proceeding to describe reconstitution it will be well to examine 

 a few leading features in connexion with the viticulture of the district, such 

 as varieties cultivated, climate, soil cultural methods, &c. 



Varieties. 



For raisin drying the grape most extensively grown is certainly the mus- 

 catel, which w'e know so well under the name of Gordo Blanco. The 

 season was too advanced at the time of my visit for it to be possible to 

 decide the vexed question as to the identity or otherwise of this variety 

 with the Muscat of Alexandria. Manv authorities consider the two to be 



