10 Feb., 19 17. J T/u Siumner Bud, d-c, of the Vine. 93 



is so rapid and abuudaut as to necessitate the removal of the tie a few 

 weeks after grafting. As a rule, the string rots and disappears without 

 any interference being necessary, but it may happen that the soil of 

 the mound remains so dry that the string does not rot; tliis dryne.ss 

 of the mound need not cause alarm ; though a mellow and slightly 

 moist state of the mound provides the best i)ossible conditions, it is far 

 better for it to be too dry than too wet. The sc!on obtains its supply 

 of moisture from the stock and not from the soil, the function of which 

 is merely to prevent it from drying up, and for this purpose dry, loose 

 soil is very effectual. Should the string appear to be causing undesir- 

 able constriction to the new tissues which are forming, it will be well 

 to remove it, the mound being carefully made up again as soon as this 

 has been done. 



A mistake which might easily be made in irrigated vineyards, and 

 against which it is here well to give an emphatic warning, is the water- 

 ing of the vines shortly after they are grafted ; the results of such a 

 course would in most cases prove disastrous. A watering a fortnight or 

 so before grafting is always beneficial, as it insures the vines being well 

 " in sap," but any water applied afterwards tends to hinder, rather 

 than to promote success, and may cause most serious damage. With the 

 exception of attention to the tie, the grafted vines can be left to them- 

 selves until early spring, when they will require staking, and the upper 

 portion of the stock will need cutting back. In order to facilitate 

 winter cultivation it will usually be found convenient to roughly cut 

 the canes of the stock, after the fall of the leaves, as at c, c, c, c. 

 Fig. 9. 



Cutting back the Stock. 



In early spring when vine buds commence to sprout the grafts 

 must be inspected ; it is then easy to distinguish between those which 

 have succesded and those which have failed. The latter will be spring 

 grafted (ordinary cleft graft) in the usual way during September 

 October, or November, as may be thought most suitable according to 

 the nature of the season. In the case of successful grafts the removai 

 of the upper portion of the stock must now receive attention. The 

 vine will now have the appearance of Fig. 9. Each graft which has 

 taken will now also be staked, as shown in Figs. 9 and 10, for reasons 

 which will be explained presently. 



The manner in which the stock is cut back is a matter of consider 

 able importance, though opinions differ somewhat as to which is the 

 best method. On no account should the whole of the upper portion bo 

 removed by cutting close to the recently inserted bud (at >/, Fig. 10) ; 

 to do so would probably result in the stock dying back for the length of 

 a cou,ple of inches on the side opposite to the bud in such a way as to 

 inevitably produce a faulty stem. If, however, the stock is cut off at 

 X, Fig. 10, this danger will be avoided ; the stub of stock wood thus 

 left dies back gradually to the neighborhood of the bud graft, and it 

 can be removed a year later when completely dead. An even better 

 way is to cut the stock back, as shown in Fig. 9, or in other words, 

 only partially, a small spur being left with a couple of eyes; these will 

 send out two small canes, which will be stopped bacK severely, as shown 

 in Fig. 10, but which will allow enough sap to circulate in the stem 

 of the stock to insure its remaining alive until the union between the 



