AMPELIDEjE. IV. Vms. 



705 



branches at the bunch instead of the next joint, the usual prac- 

 tice. He also blinds all the eyes on each fruit-spur as soon as 

 they push, except the uppermost, which he retains to draw up the 

 sap to nourish the fruit, however he never suffers eyes to push 

 above a joint or two, he pinches them back, and he is always 

 particularly cautious not to injure the leaf accompanying the 

 bunch, for if that is lost the fruit of course will come to nothing. 



Thinning the leaves and fruit. -The fruit clusters should be re- 

 gularly thinned out with narrow-pointed scissars, in order to allow 

 those berries left room to swell. This must entirely depend upon 

 the kind so thinned. Cutting off the clusters, to a certain extent, 

 of plants overloaded, and pushing weak wood, is the only means 

 to cause them to produce shoots fit to bear fruit next year, and 

 this should be duly attended to so long as the future plants are 

 a matter of importance. The leaves should be thinned in order 

 to admit air and light among the berries, always however taking 

 care the leaf accompanying the bunch of fruit be retained un- 

 injured. 



Remedies for bleeding. If pruning has been timely, the vine 

 is not liable to bleed. But if the sap rises before the wound is 

 healed bleeding ensues, and is not easily stopped. This of course 

 retards the plant ; but the consequences are not so disastrous as 

 many seem to apprehend. The following remedies rank among 

 the best : Sear and cover the wound with melted wax, or with 

 warm pitch spread over a piece of bladder; or peel off the out- 

 side bark to some distance from the place, and then press into 

 the pores of the wood a composition of pounded chalk and tar, 

 mixed to the consistence of putty. Abercrombie. However the 

 best preventative is not to prune till the wood is thoroughly ripe 

 in autumn, for plants pruned too late in spring, and forced too 

 soon afterwards, will bleed. But when the vine is in full leaf it 

 is not liable to bleed ; therefore the largest branches may be cut 

 off during the growing season with perfect safety. Mr. Knight 

 (Hort. trans, vol. 1 .) recommends four parts of scraped cheese to 

 be added to one-part of calcined oyster-shells or other pure cal- 

 careous earth, and this composition pressed strongly into the 

 pores of the wood. This done, he says, the sap will instantly 

 cease to flow. 



Stirring the soil and culture of the borders. The surface of 

 an open border should be turned with a three-pronged fork, not 

 digging so deep as to injure the roots. This design is merely to 

 revive the surface. When it is necessary to recruit the soil, dig 

 the exhausted part up, and work in such a compost as has 

 been described under soil. The dung out of the cow-house, 

 perfectly rotted, is a fine manure for the vine. From the time 

 the buds rise till the fruit is set, manure the border once in 10 

 days -with the drainings of dung-hills poured over the roots of 

 . the plants. Abercrombie. A week or two previous to com- 

 mencing to force, the border should be forked over carefully, 

 and let it be watered all over with drainings of the dung-hill, 

 which repeat at the end of 4 or 5 days, giving as much as will 

 sink down -to the deepest roots and fibres. The border on the 

 o.utside should already have been covered to a good thickness 

 with stable-yard dung, the juice of which may be washed down 

 to the roots. The intention of this covering is to answer as a 

 manure, and also to keep severe frost from the roots, from the 

 time the sap is put in motion till the spring is so advanced, as 

 that the plants will sustain no injury. Previous to laying on the 

 dung the border should be pointed, in order that the juices of the 

 dung may descend the more readily. M'Phail. Speechly 

 covered the vine borders in front of his hot-house with gravel. 

 The best gardeners do not crop them, or only with the most tem- 

 porary crops of vegetables. 



Time of beginning to force. The best time to begin to force 

 is the beginning of March, if the object be simply to obtain 

 grapes in perfection moderately early. Those who begin earlier 

 VOL. i. PART. vni. 



have a great number of obstacles and discouraging contingencies 

 to intercept final success, from the adverse state of the weather. 

 Gardeners, however, who work a number of houses, and who 

 have to provide as well as they can against demands for grapes 

 in early succession, begin to force about the 21st of December, 

 and successively, in other houses, the 1st of January, the 1st of 

 February, and so on. Attempts are made to lay forward for a 

 crop in March by beginning to force in August ; ripe grapes 

 may be cut in 5 months or less, but when short days compose the 

 third part of the course in about 6 months. Abercrombie. M'Phail 

 considers the month of February to be the best time to begin to 

 force, if grapes be not wanted very early. To begin to force in 

 August, M'Phail says, it would not be adviseable, unless you 

 have several vineries, for there are many things which might 

 reasonably be urged against the probability of success ; however, 

 by custom, vines may be brought, as it were naturally, to shoot 

 in the autumn, and their fruit may be set before the shortest 

 days ; the greatest art will then be to preserve them through 

 the dead of winter in a lively growing state. This can be 

 done only by much attention in making gentle fires, and 

 admitting an easy circulation of fresh air into the house every 

 favourable opportunity. On the supposition that the earliest 

 crop of grapes were over by the end of June, and the glasses 

 laid aside, and if it is desirable to have grapes early, prune your 

 vines in August, and put your house in order ; and if it is neces- 

 sary, dig and manure your border, and if dry give it a good 

 watering with dung-water. When this is done, draw on the 

 lights, and keep the air in the house to a moderate degree of 

 heat, and they will shoot out and shew fruit ; treat them as before 

 directed. Speechly begins to force in November to have grapes 

 in April. Griffin (Hort. trans. 4. p. 1 06.) begins early in Ja- 

 nuary ; no fire is used the first week, in the second a little fire is 

 given every other night, the third week the heat is kept up to 

 50 or 52 degrees, but never allowed to exceed 55 till the vines 

 begin to break ; from that time until they flower the heat is 

 kept between 52 and 57 degrees, and while they are in bloom the 

 heat is raised to 57 and 65 degrees. Air is given regularly and 

 plentifully through all these stages until the blossom appears, 

 when the house is kept close, unless the sun be very powerful. 

 When the bloom is past, attention is paid to thinning the grapes, 

 a regular heat is kept up, and air given in due quantity when 

 the weather permits, giving a larger proportion when the heat of 

 the sun is strong, and shutting up early in the afternoon. The 

 crop so treated generally ripens in July. 



James Aeon (Hort. trans, vol. 7. p. 1.) is enabled to furnish a 

 regular supply of grapes throughout the year. He commences 

 forcing on the 1st of September, and the fruit begins to ripen 

 about the beginning of March, and continues to be gathered to 

 the middle of May. The vines are trained horizontally on an 

 arched trellis, a considerable distance from the glass, some on the 

 walls and some on the rafters ; but these last are introduced six 

 weeks after the forcing of those on the trellis has begun, and 

 they yield a succession of crops, which begin to ripen early in 

 May. The fires of the house are directly under the trellis. 

 The vines are planted within the house, but so as the earth is 

 not heated by the fire. In pruning these vines, he leaves as little 

 wood as possible. He prefers stopping them one joint above, 

 having no joint without a cluster. When the crop is over, the 

 branches should be laid near the ground and shaded, until the 

 time of again beginning to force. This shade will have some 

 affinity to the gloom of winter, which never fails to give vegeta- 

 tion increased energy. In May he shuts up his late vinery as 

 soon as the bunches become visible. The vines are trained on a 

 trellis near the glass. Till they are out of blossom the air is 

 kept very warm. By this means the wood grows more compact, 

 for if the house be kept cold the wood wi'l become soft and 

 4X 



