126 THE RAISIN INDUSTRY. 



eyes each. This experience has been acquired simultaneously in 

 Fresno, San Bernardino and San Diego counties. Many growers 

 affirm the fact that the difficulty is to get spurs enough, and my own 

 experience is that, after the vine has once attained its age of full 

 bearing, all the strongest branches are required to furnish spurs, and 

 that only the weak and sickly shoots should be cut away entirely. 

 The strong flow of sap in the spring requires many outlets, so as not 

 to unnecessarily push the cell walls and cause disorders, and in case 

 the soil is not strong enough to sustain and perfect so many grapes, 

 it is better to manure it heavily and make it rich enough for all pur- 

 poses. I believe an average of from eight to ten spurs are required by 

 strong and bearing vines. Only strong canes should be left at any 

 time. Weak and immature canes should be cut off close to the trunk 

 or to the head. 



Muscatel Vine Eight Years Old, after Winter Pruning. 



This method of pruning differs materially from that this season 

 adopted by A. B. Butler. He leaves now only from five to eight spurs 

 on the vines, generally the lesser number. He maintains that his ob- 

 ject is to produce large and superior grapes, and not to have his vines 

 overbear. The outcome of such close pruning has not yet been 

 demonstrated, but it may be possible that this is the proper way. Mr. 

 Butler has certainly one point in his favor, and that is that it has not 

 yet been demonstrated that very close pruning causes the disease known 

 as black-knot, as quite frequently the unpruned vines show this 

 disease much more than those which are pruned close. Another point 

 in favor of this pruning is that it has been practiced in Malaga for 

 years without any ill effects. But, before s ? uch very close pruning can 

 be generally recommended, our experience in this direction should be 

 more extensive, and several years more will be necessary to come to 

 any satisfactory conclusion in this respect. We know, however, that 

 too many (say from twenty to twenty-five) spurs will exhaust the low- 

 headed Muscatel vines, and in order to bring such vines back to proper 

 bearing it has been found necessary to reduce the number of spurs at 

 once to one- third and then gradually increase their number as the vines 



