M.\KKKTI.\<; OK (llfAI'KS IX ClI A f I' A U<J T A I'>KI.T 1329 



down during- the winter, and prevent erosion of the soil. This 

 brings us to the question of early and late plowing in spring. 



I like to begin cultivation as late in spring and cease as early 

 in fall as possible. The cover crops suggested make this practice 

 successful. They can be sown the latter part of July and make 

 growth enough to hold the soil through the heavy fall rains, mak- 

 ing uo growth in spring, so cultivation may be delayed into May. 

 Tf such a cover crop is grown, grapes seem to be freer from berry 

 moth than if legumes are grown. 



METHODS OF PRUNING 



Pruning is done in about as many ways as men have minds, 

 most using the arm system as a foundation. This system should 

 he called " the ChantauqUa," as it was first used here: There are 

 other systems, all of which are explained in cultural methods for 

 the grape in Xew York 011 page 1272. 



ESSENTIAL CLIMATE FOR GRAPE CULTURE 



Many persons wonder what makes this Lake Erie Valley such 

 a" wonderful place for grape production and attribute it to the 

 soil, but the climate is the real secret of its success. There are 

 two essentials for profitable grape culture: first, water to prevent 

 frosts; secondly, air drainage. In the Lake Erie Valley these 

 qualifications have produced a dry atmosphere; there are no foggy 

 mornings and very little dew, and only three frosts have occurred, 

 in the last fifty years that have done damage to the grape crop. 

 In this belt we have harvested grapes every year of this fifty 

 years varying from fifty per cent to a full crop. 



MAGNITUDE OF THE INDUSTRY 



The crops harvested have been from four or five thousand to 

 between eight and nine thousand carloads a year. The bumper 

 crop was grown in 1890, when nearly nine thousand carloads 

 were harvested. This, it will be remembered, was a panic year, 

 and the growers of grapes went into competition with one of the 

 largest apple crops ever harvested, a policy that proved detri- 

 mental to both. In that year the grape growers lived on hope, 



