170 TREATISE ON THE 



up, carefully avoiding all interference with the 

 young roots. 



This will greatly mitigate the injurious effect 

 of the drought on the vines, as it prepares the 

 ground for the absorption of the dews, which, 

 durjng a part of the season, are heavy. In ge- 

 neral, the vines require twice in the season to be 

 pinched and tied up, which is highly favourable 

 to the success of the cultivation. -In the second 

 pinching, the oars, which, from being too short, 

 or perhaps from not having pushed into branch, 

 had escaped the first operation, should be careful- 

 ly taken off. There are some vine dressers, 

 who, in tying up, pinch the plants, or detach en- 

 tirely the small offsets that appear between the 

 main branches, others disapprove and reject this 

 plan ; the first maintaining the opinion, that 

 system tends to concentrate the sap in the main 

 body of the plant, and causes a reflux so abun- 

 dant as greatly to prejudice the growth and pros- 

 perity of the fruit, whilst the latter profess a be- 

 lief directly the reverse, contending that the 

 grapes will be more apt to improve by the adop- 

 tion of the measure. 



On this important subject, I have made a num- 

 ber of experiments, from the result of which I 

 am of opinion, that no disadvantage arises from 

 the pinching and tying up of the vines in regu- 

 lar measure, where the shoots, as is often the 

 case, are not long enough to reach the top of the 

 stake, and that this plan possesses certainly the 

 advantage of giving to the vineyard an appear- 

 ance of neatness and symmetry, always valued 

 by the tasteful cultivator, and which, where it 



