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Grapes should be gathered at three different times by the following plan: 
Make a wooden frame about ten feet square, placed on two axles with four 
small wheels; cover the frame with a strong cloth, made a little deeper in the 
middle ; roll this frame under the vine you wish to shake; then shake the vine 
gently with a smooth iron hook fastened on the end of a stick, when only the 
perfectly ripe grapes will fall. The unripe grapes must be picked out for vine- 
gar, and the leaves and trash should also be taken out. In this way two hands 
may pick 100 bushels a day. From the first gathering you will get about one- 
third of the crop. The second gathering comes 14 days later, and the third 
14 days after the second. 
The above treatment of the Scuppernong insures the following improved results 
on the old treatment : The first year we get three times as many grapes, which will, 
without the addition of sugar, produce a splendid wine, similar to Rhine wine. 
By adding one-half to one pound of sugar to the gallon we get heavy wines, 
similar to Malaga, Madeira, and Port. 
Scuppernong rooted plants can be raised only by layers; cuttings do not take 
root, but bleed to death. The seeds of the White Scuppernong produce the 
Black Scuppernong. The white grape is a grade richer in sugar, and finer in 
flavor than the Black, Flower, and Mish grapes. 
IS TEXAS A WINE LAND? 
C. E. Bauer, of Fayette county, Texas, thus writes : 
In what is properly called wine-growing Texas, and especially in this district, 
there has as yet been little done in vine culture. Only here and there have one 
or more species of grapes been planted, which, in the majority of cases, have 
returned a very poor result, and have soon disappeared either on account of the 
climate or in consequence of neglect. Of the transatlantic vines the greater 
part do not prosper here; some species wiil bear and ripen tolerably, but only 
for table use, as they are never reliable enough to be raised for the wine-press. 
There is, however, a species here, forwarded to us by Mr. Brink from the 
gardeu of Dr. Moore, in Houston, which promises to become very profitable, and, 
according to my judgment, it is the Catawba, at least it resembles it strikingly. 
Messrs. C. Schuedemagen and Carl Vogelsang have vines of it in bearing, and I 
had during the present season the opportunity of seeing them in full fruit. 
They bear a luxuriant crop and yield good claret. During the present as 
well as the last season, however, they were somewhat affected by the dry rot, 
but this may have been in consequence of the wet seasons, which were unfavora- 
ble for vintagers, and moreover, in both cases, the vines were not sufliciently 
exposed to the air, which ought to be done in every vineyard. Also the roots 
may have been too flat and shallow, as in both instances the vines were raised 
from cuttings, which should be avoided in southern States, as it has been proved 
that in all vineyards planted with cuttings dry and wet rot and mildew have 
prevailed a great deal more than in those planted with roots. It is an ungrate- 
ful job to plant cuttings here. I have pianted such for three consecutive years, 
and each time, on account of dry weather, have lost two-thirds of them. We 
have, therefore, to practice the layering of the plants so that we may more 
speedily and more surely raise plants with roots. 
The best and surest way, however, to raise acclimated and richly bearing vines 
would be to improve our own indigenous Texas wild grapes, for even the European 
vines of the highest fame, as Chasselas, Muscat, T'raminer, Malvasia, Reisling, 
&e., were not always what they are at present, and only by constant improve- 
ment have they been brought to the present climax of perfection. We have 
