April 27, 1876. ] 



JOURNAL OF HOBTICOIiTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



319 



PBOLIFIC VINES. 



;N the autainu of last year I read in your 

 columns an account of Mr. Ealli's gardens at 

 Cleveland House. To me the most interest- 

 ing portion of the description was not that 

 relating to the elaborate carpet bedding, but 

 that relating to the promising young Vines. 

 I read " W.'s" remarks the more attentively, 

 knowing that he has had imusual oppor- 

 tunities for obtaining an intimate knowledge 

 of Vines, and for many years has been iden- 

 tified with their successful culture. When he described 

 the young Vines at Cleveland House as having perfected 

 wonderfal canes and likely to be heard of again, I did not 

 think that it would fall to my lot, and especially so soon, 

 to remark on their productiveness. 



In the report alluded to your correspondent suggested 

 that as the Vines were planted closely the greatest quan- 

 tity of fruit in the shortest time would be obtained by 

 cutting every alternate cane down to the bottom of the 

 rafters, leaving the other rods nearly their full length, 

 and allow them to bear heavily. 



Mr. Legg, the gardener, it appears, perceived the force 

 of the suggestion, and carried it into effect, having pre- 

 viously taken especial pains to ripen the caues thoroughly 

 by the aid of fire heat applied to the houses in autumn. 

 The canes were, therefore, left 14 to 15 feet long ; they 

 were stout, having prominent eyes, and contained the 

 slightest speck of pith when pruned. These Vines in the 

 late house have now made lateral growth of a foot long, 

 the eyes having pushed with perfect regularity, and are 

 showing the most extraordinary crop — the greatest num- 

 ber of bunches for the age of the Vines that I have ever 

 seen or heard of. That statement, however, scarcely con- 

 veys an intelhgible idea, and to make the matter plain I 

 will take one Vine as an example, remembering that it is 

 the first season's cane and the first time the Vine has 

 showed fruit. 



On this Vine may be seen ninety-four bunches. That 

 was its state on the '21st inst. when I called on Mr. Legg, 

 but since then a number of the " shows " have probably 

 been removed. 



That Vine is a sample of the other Vines. Every 

 lateral contains four or five bunches : they commence 

 showing at the second leaf of the lateral and at 3 inches 

 from the rod, and nearly every axil contains a bunch. 

 The joints of the laterals are so short — only an inch or two 

 apart — that the bunches even before they flower touch 

 each other, and the house at the time of my visit pre- 

 sented nothing short of a remarkable exhibition. I con- 

 sider these prolific Vines to be highly worthy of special 

 remai-k ; for rods in their second year after planting to 

 show nearly a hundred bunches each prove what may be 

 done by good cultivation — growing stout short-jointed 

 canes and ripening then' wood perfectly. 



These Vines afford a striking example of the great 

 value and importance of a complete maturation of the 

 wood in the autumn, for it is to the special pains taken 



Ho. 787.-VOL. XXX., New Seetes. 



in that respect that the extraordinary crop now showing 

 is to be attributed. Of course I could not count them 

 all, but I have no doubt that had I done so I should have 

 found a thousand bunches showing in 1876 on twelve 

 Vines which had been planted in June, 1874. 



There can be no doubt that your correspondent wag 

 right when he stated that more Grapes would be obtained 

 in the least time by the plan which he suggested than by 

 any other that could have been adopted; and there can be 

 no doubt but that Mr. Legg after freely thinning (which 

 by the time this appears will have been done) wiU be 

 able to cut more than twice the weight of Grapes that 

 he would had he cut down all the Vines in the orthodox 

 manner and allowed each to carry the limited number of 

 bunches usual for the first year's fruiting. 



These Vines, it should be remembered, were planted 

 2 feet apart with the object of bearing every alternate 

 rod heavily and enabling the others — the permanent 

 Vines — to attain strength by a light system of cropping 

 during the first few years of their growth, eventually 

 removing the nursing Vines altogether. Mr. Legg, how- 

 ever, had some doubt as to whether the decaying roots 

 of the Vines removed would not engender fungus, and 

 which might possibly spread to the roots of the permanent 

 Vines : hence he has aJopted the safe system of not 

 pulling up the Vines, but cutting them down and training 

 up young rods annually — one Vine bearing the crop this 

 season and the next perfecting a fine cane for another 

 year's crop. This is an old but a good system of Grape 

 production, and by adopting it more fruit may be obtained 

 in a less time than by the popular spur system of pruning. 

 That the plan has so far answered exceedingly well, the 

 extraordinary show of bunches at Cleveland House de- 

 monstrates. 



I mention the matter now because it is the time to 

 train-up young rods from old Vines ; and where old Vines 

 do not produce satisfactory crops on the spur system the 

 training-up of new wood may effect a great improvement 

 in the value of the crop succeeding. — G. 'W. Y. 



VIOLETS. 

 I OBTAIN my best blooms from plants in very open 

 exposed sites. I have before advocated partial shade, 

 but I find I made a mistake. Of course I have more red 

 spider, which Mr. Abbey (see page 292) makes no mention 

 of. My remedy is to cut all the leaves off not quite 

 close — about 2 inches, or not quite so much — from the 

 surface, and immediately give a good dressing of soot ; 

 this not only destroys the red spider, but acts as a 

 stimulant. It will only require once doing in the season ; 

 about the end of July is the best time. And tiU last 

 season I planted, and advocated planting, "four rows in 

 4-feet beds," but I find 4-feet beds made to run east and 

 west or as near as possible, and planted across are much 

 better, especially if you give protection in severe weather, 

 and so planted you can not only place some temporary 

 screen on the north side, but the rows have the full benefit 

 of the sun at all times in the winter or early spring months. 



■ No. 1439.- Vol. LV., Old Sebies. 



