n6 FRUIT GROWING FOR AMATEURS 



the day becomes hot and the thermometer continues to rise, 

 more air must be admitted. 



Ventilation of the Vinery. It is not wise to open the 

 front ventilators until early summer, if the greenhouse can be 

 kept sufficiently cool by means of the top ventilators. Cold 

 winds are prevalent in spring, and it is important to avoid 

 draughts. If the amateur remembers that the ventilators 

 should be opened to prevent the temperature rising too high, 

 and not for the purpose of lowering it, he will have solved the 

 difficulty experienced by many in this direction. The rule 

 is to increase the amount of ventilation while the natural warmth 

 continues to increase, and to lessen the amount of air as the 

 out-of-door temperature declines. In practice the ventilators 

 may be left partly open all night in summer, opened wide in the 

 morning, and partly closed in the evening. During spring 

 greater care and more precise attention are required, for the 

 shoots of the Vine are tender and the wind is often cold and 

 the weather changeable. If the weather is mild, a little air 

 ought to be given early in the morning, the amount being in- 

 creased later on ; in the afternoon the ventilators should be 

 partly, and in the evening finally, closed. The chief points at 

 which to aim are to avoid creating a draught, so to regulate 

 the ventilation that the temperature will rise gradually, and, 

 above all, to aim at maintaining as uniform a temperature 

 as possible. 



When the Vines are in bloom the ventilators ought to be 

 opened wide if the weather is favourable. When the Grapes 

 are about the size of small marbles they pass through what 

 is known as the stoning period ; at that time it is particularly 

 necessary to maintain a regular temperature. 



Thinning the Grapes is a task that calls for attention 

 when the berries are about the size of small peas. A pair of 

 grape scissors, having long, tapering blades, is necessary, and 

 a small forked stick with which to hold the stem of the bunch 

 is also required. All small, seedless berries are cut out first ; 

 then those from the centre of the bunch. The berries at the 

 ends of the branchlets must not be cut away, or the symmetry 

 of the bunches will be spoilt. The gardener should try to pic- 

 ture the bunch as it will be when the grapes are full grown, 

 and cut out the small and ill-placed ones to such an extent 

 that the remainder are about -J inch apart. 



