260 



F A R M E R S ' REGISTER. 



[No. 5 



best kind, I now looked up my trarden. and kept 

 the key in my pocket. My visits were indeed 

 frequent, and my watchfulness extreme, hut abun- 

 dance of the most temjjtinij lookinir crapes I had 

 ever seen, could not be nefrlecied. To lie brielj 1 

 kept them han^inir a ilill niunth afier every body 

 pronounced them ripe, and from the richness of 

 flavor, the delicious ripeness of full mati;riiy, I was 

 more amply rewarded than I had ever hiMMi before. 



The fourth year, 1 pruned again, leaving three 

 or four eyes on such fruit stems as I thought ne- 

 cessary, expecting (as I had before expected) to 

 have a smgle bunch to every eye; that is, three 

 or four bunches on each fruit stem. Guess my 

 surprise, Mr, Editor, on now oliserving as the 

 fruit came out, that instead of a bunch of sjrapes 

 at eacii eye, a new fruit stem put out there, on 

 which there were sometimes three, sometimes 

 four, and I verily believe, sometimes five bunches. 

 I was puzzled by this unlooked tor (juantity, 

 which was four for one, and iiesitated for some 

 time what I should do. At length, however, the 

 commendable desire of ascertaining a fact con- 

 quered my fondness for even such grapps as I en- 

 joyed last year, and I decided to try tn save from 

 the rot, all; even the immense quantity of fruit 

 that was daily advancing. 



With this sole object kept in view, I pursued 

 steadily my last year's plan. I nipi)ed off daily, 

 such young shoots as appeared, almost while in 

 the bud, and especially kept the fi-uit stems, on 

 which the grapes were hanging, from extending 

 in length. Here and there 1 allowed a main 

 shoot to push onward, as [ contemplatod erectiuir 

 my twelve feet arbor, and looked forward to cover- 

 ing it in the most perfiict manner — all other wood 

 was kept down. 



But I must conclude. My experiment of sav- 

 ing the grapes from droppinor, succeeded beyond 

 my most sanguine expectations; the fruit hung 

 until a frost, but never ripened! There was more 

 that could be perfected by much older vines. — 

 Yet although I lost the use and enjoyment of it 

 in its ripeness, I satisfied myself as to what it was 

 that occasioned the rot in grapes. I am persuad- 

 ed, it is because the growth of the vine itself is 

 allowed to go on, after the fruit is set. Keep the 

 young growth from putting out beyond an inch, 

 by pinching it of^" short, and your fruit will not 

 drop. When it is apparently ripe, let it still hang 

 two or three weeks on the vine, (locking up your 

 garden, J until perfectly matured; and in order 

 fully to enjoy it, eat it early in the morning, or at 

 mid-day. 



My errors ought to be clearly stated; they 

 were, first, in training up a single stem without a 

 branch; from which mode, such of the vines as 

 accidentally lost their leading shoot, were left, 

 as the French say, " sans ressource," and died 

 down to the ground, while others perislied alto- 

 gether. 



The second was in neglecting to have substan- 

 tial supports prepared before hand. From want 

 of this my vines suffered, while the trouble it 

 cost me was enormous. 



My last error had nearly proved fatal. From 

 permitting the vines to be completely exhausted 

 by the quantity of fruit left on them — they will 

 not recover their stength for years to come. 



AN UPPER COUNTRY RECLUSE. 



From Loudon's Gardener's Magazine for June, 1837. 

 OX THE CULTIVATION OF CURHANTS. 



Jiij T. iSymons. 



Currents being a very useful fruit for the table, 

 as well as fur tarts, preserviuii, &.c., a hint may 

 not be amiss to such as fail in cultivating them to 

 that perfection which they are capable of being 

 brought to by summer pruning. My method is 

 this: — At the time they are about to set the fruit, 

 I cut back, or pinch off, all such shoots as are not 

 likely to be wanted for next year's wooil, to about 

 two inches fi-om the spurs whereon the bunches of 

 fruit are formed, taking care not to pinch them off 

 too close, in which case the young fruit would 

 wither. By this simple means, the fruit, by re- 

 ceiving more light and air, as well as a greater 

 portion of assistance from the tree, will swell to 

 to the greatest perfection. Should other super- 

 fluous branches shoot forth when the fi"uit is in a 

 more advanced state, they are removed in a simi- 

 lar way, remembering, throughout the season, to 

 keep the bushes as clear as possible of unneces- 

 sary wood. The result of this mode of treat- 

 ment gained me the first prize last year at th?. 

 Cornwall Horticultural Show at Truro. I should 

 imagine this mode of treatment wiil answer well 

 lor gooseberries; and I should like to know if the 

 Lancashire growers pursue, in any way, a similar 

 method to the above. 



Tiie remarks in Vol. X. p. 41., first induced me 

 to try the effect of summer pruning upon the cur- 

 rant; and I shall certainly now generally adopt it. 

 I trust that others will follow the example. 



Cloicaiice, Jlpril 3, 1837. 



From tlie same. 



A MODE OP PRESERVING CAULIFLOWERS 

 THROUGH THE WINTER. 



By Peter Mackenzie, Gardener, West Plean. 



Cauliflowers are a great favorite with all ranks 

 of society; and I believe that, ever since they 

 have been cultivated, means have been used to 

 preserve them through the winter. I, like the rest 

 of my brethren, have tried various methods to 

 eflTect this; such as burying them in the earth, 

 hanging them up by the roots, keeping them in 

 frames, &c. But by none of these methods have 

 I succeeded so well, as by the one I will presently 

 state, which I have not seen nor heard of being 

 practised by any one else. 



Towards the end of autumn, I make a bed or 

 beds, according to circumstances, of moist sand, 

 in any cool house that will exclude the frost. — 

 The beds should be four inches deep. Having 

 previously planted a greater number of cauliflower 

 plants than v/ould be required at the time they 

 are to come into use, I take the surplus, when in 

 a good condition, and cut off their roots, leaving 

 n stalk about three inches or four inches long; I 

 then cut off all the leaves, except the innermost 

 row; and, after shortening these, I insert the stalk 

 info the sand-bed, and cover the cauliflower with a 

 flower-pot. In this manner a large quantity may 

 be contained in a small space: tor example, a bed 

 twelve feet square will hold 2S8 heads, allowing 

 six square inches to each head. Again, by taking 



