THE FLORAL WORLD AND GARDEN GUIDE. 21 



PRUNING THE GRAPE- TINE. 



HERE are but two distinct methods of pruning the grape- 

 vine ; these are the "spur" and " long-rod " systems. 

 By the first, the fruit is produced from shortened 

 branches proceeding from an old or principal branch, or 

 from the main stem of the vine ; by the other method, 

 the wood or branches which bore fruit the preceding year is entirely 

 cut away, and young branches trained in its place, for the produc- 

 tion of berries in the current season. The first is most usually 

 employed, because the simplest, though each has its peculiar advan- 

 tages. The main stem of a young plant, no matter what the future 

 mode of training is to be, should be first carried in a perpendicular 

 manner to the required height, and if it attains this at an early part 

 of the season, should then be bent downwards, in order to induce a 

 branch from the curved part ; or if it is near the end of the season, 

 should be cut oyer at the part, the object in both cases being to gain 

 two laterally spreading arms which shall extend from the principal 

 stem in the form of a T; from these two, other perpendicular 

 branches, which are ultimately to form the fruit-bearing portion of 

 the tree, are to proceed at intervals at not less than eighteen inches, 

 and that the head may be regularly formed, particular attention 

 must be given to the buds of the laterally extending branches at the 

 time they are about to start, removing those which are badly placed, 

 and bending the ends of those arms down so that the shoots from 

 near their bases may be formed first, for if allowed to grow at their 

 own pleasure, it is most likely that the terminal buds will break first, 

 and there will be consequently much trouble to get the middle of the 

 head filled. 



Having obtained the required amount of rods from the horizontal 

 branches at the proper distances, in the third season from planting 

 w r ill begin the pruning; if the "spur" system is preferred, the rods 

 will only require to be carried upwards as far as they will grow, and 

 all the rods left untouched, merely pinching on 7 the points of those 

 laterals which produce fruit, which should be done under all circum- 

 stances when they have grown about four joints beyond the bunch. 

 In the autumn these side-shoots, which are to form the spurs, are to 

 be cut back to within two or three joints of their origin, and the 

 repetition of these courses annually constitutes the spur system, by 

 which the principal rod supporting the spurs remains for years, while 

 by the other mode of pruning it is removed every season. 



The only trouble attached to the long-rod method is to provide a 

 fruit-bearing branch, that shall proceed from the bottom of the head, 

 it being sometimes difficult to make them break with vigour from 

 the particular part desired ; and in order to facilitate this emission, 

 it is necessary to keep the existing branch bent downwards till the 

 future one has fairly broken, and then to check all others that seom 

 likely to rival it in strength. The matured rod of the preceding 

 year's formation will produce fruit from nearly every joint of its 

 length, and by stopping the points of the shoots which carry the 



January. 



