254 THE FRUIT GROWER'S GUIDE. 



pounds 6 ounces; 1873, 16 pounds 1 ounce; 1874, 16 pounds 10 ounces; and in 

 1875 the monstrous bunch represented on page 236 weighed at Edinburgh 25 pounds 

 15 ounces, so it seems to have lost weight on the way. This is an achievement un- 

 paralleled in the history of grape culture, and as such is worthy of record here. 



The loam, called turf, should be cut 3 inches deep with a spade, or be ploughed up 

 when the ground is in good working order. Never handle it in very wet weather. It 

 may be placed in narrow ridge-roof stacks when not required for immediate use, 

 sprinkling quicklime or soot on each layer of turves when there is a suspicion of wire- 

 worms (see Yol. I., page 277). Turf, however, may be carted direct to where it is 

 wanted, and be used forthwith with the other ingredients in the border. 



Vine roots extend to a considerable distance from the stem in favourable soil ; some 

 have been found more than four times the distance from the stem the branches extended. 

 Where the natural soil is suited to the vine there is a manifest advantage in allowing 

 the roots to have a free run, as they then find sufficient nourishment for the crops. 

 When the roots are restricted to a fourth the extent of food-supplying area the 

 grower must furnish ample nutrient elements or the vines will languish. Thus vines 

 in a narrow border need more manure than do others in a wider one, the branch 

 area being equal in both cases. 



Instead of extensive inside and outside borders made all at once, it has been found 

 more satisfactory to provide a narrow border only to plant the vines in, adding strips 

 of fresh compost annually, or, as more root space is needed, continuing the procedure 

 till the border is fully made ; then maintain the vines in health and fruitfulness by 

 top- dressings, partial renewals of the border and, after a time, complete renovation. 

 Some growers, however, make the border the full width at once, crop the vines heavily, 

 feed highly, and clear all away when exhausted. It is the most economical to 

 make the border piecemeal where the soil is unsuitable, to manure heavily where the 

 soil is mechanically correct, crop the vines to their full capacity consistent with the 

 perfection of the fruit, and when they are no longer profitable, supplant them by young 

 vines, instead of rejuvenating the old by expensive border renovation. These are 

 matters upon which growers must exercise judgment. 



The structures to be devoted to vines often have the interior so arranged for plant 

 growing that it may be difficult to make a suitable border inside. There is no necessity 

 for an inside border when it is not desired to have very early grapes. Most greenhouse 

 are better with the roots outside than inside the house, for with the roots 



