1382 



GRAPE 



GRAPE 



ing to circumstances. Sometimes as high as 10 cents is 

 realized on very early and very late shipments or with 

 choice grapes, but this is seldom. Distilleries pay three- 

 fourths of 1 cent a pound delivered, or gather and pay 

 j^ cent a pound. If only one ton to the acre of grapes 

 is the yield, the gross return (and also the net return) 

 an acre would thus be from $10 to $15. This is more 

 than cotton ordinarily nets. With two tons to the 

 acre of grapes, which is not an enormous yield, the 

 return would be $30 an acre delivered at the still. To 

 those who have no scruples in regard to so disposing 

 of their crop, this is probably the most profitable 

 method. There are local stills in almost every county. 

 There is not much encouragement now for grape- 

 raising in Georgia, and vineyards are annually being 

 destroyed by hundreds of acres. Some planting, how- 

 ever, is still going on in southern Georgia, in the "wire 

 grass" country, where the industry is still found profit- 

 able by reason of the fact that the northern market may 

 be entered ahead of competition, and also that insects 

 and fungous pests have not yet put in an appearance in 

 that region. 



Planting, training, and the like. 



The vines of the true southern grapes, such as Herbe- 

 mont and the Post-oak grape hybrids, are planted 

 12 to 14 feet apart, in rows 9 feet apart, while such 

 northern varieties as are planted are set 8 feet apart 

 in row. The Muscadines, such as Scuppernong, are 

 mostly grown upon arbors about 7 feet high and rarely 

 or never pruned, although trained on trellis, as are 

 other grapes, and, pruned early in fall, after leaf-fall, 

 succeed excellently. The culture is mostly with the 

 plow, turning first away and then to the rows, hoeing 

 the space along the row not reached by the plow. 

 The trellis mostly used is the 3-wire trellis; first wire 

 at 18 to 24 inches from the ground, and the others 

 successively 1 foot apart, above the first. The 

 training is commonly an indifferent attempt at the 

 Kniffin system, and no system is generally carried out. 

 Some pinch back the leading shoots once, few twice. 

 Some use single posts and spur-prune. A few have 

 made the Munson canopy trough trellis of 3 wires, and 

 report most favorably of it. 



Fungicides are used successfully by some. Others 

 plant only such as Ives, Norton Virginia, Moore Early, 

 Perkins, and some other varieties not subject to rot and 

 mildew, so as to avoid spraying. They also avoid, 

 thereby, having grapes of the finer qualities, and get 

 only the lowest prices. From such mostly come the 

 report that grape-culture with them is unprofitable. So 

 it should be, as such grapes in the market have the 

 effect to depress prices on all kinds of grapes. In the 

 moister parts of the South, black-rot, downy mildew 

 and ripe grape-rot are very prevalent, but, excepting 

 the ripe rot, are readily overcome by the bordeaux 

 mixture spray properly applied. 



Few growers in the South use fertilizers in their 

 vineyards. Some use barnyard manure, but the more 

 intelligent use cotton seed or cotton-seed meal in con- 

 nection with ground bone, kainit and soluble phos- 

 phates. 



Marketing and profits. 



The crop is mostly marketed fresh in the local or 

 nearby markets, as the ordinary freight and express 

 rates will not permit profitable returns on the varieties 

 mostly grown. But it has been demonstrated that fine 

 grapes that will carry well can easily be grown in the 

 South, and, when handled in best manner in neat 

 baskets, are profitable. 



There are a few established wineries in the South, 

 which use Ives, Norton Virginia, Herbemont, LeNoir, 

 and the Scuppernong and other Muscadine varieties. 

 The chief complaint of wine-growers is that legislation 

 brought about by the prohibition movement is adverse 



and often entirely prohibitive. In consequence, some 

 have bottled the juice fresh under some sterilizing 

 process, but the people are not yet educated up to the 

 use of this excellent, healthful, nourishing beverage; 

 yet the demand for it is growing, and may be largely 

 increased by enterprising makers. 



Reports collected from all parts of the South state the 

 profits all the way from nothing up to $150 an acre, 

 sometimes higher, and it is clearly evident that the 

 intelligence and enterprise of the planter are the chief 

 elements in controlling profits. Of course, localities, 

 soils and varieties play important parts, but an intel- 

 ligent grower would not select poor locality, situation, 

 soil and varieties to start with, just as he would not 

 pursue poor methods in the conduct of the business. 



There appears no reason why the South may not 

 become one of the greatest grape countries in the world 

 and it promises everything to the wide-awake, intelli- 

 gent grape-grower, for its capabilities are unlimited in 

 the production in quality and season when no other 

 section competes with it, and it has vast markets at 

 home and in the great cities just north of it. 



T. V. MUNSON. 



Grapes on the Pacific slope. 



Grape-growing was introduced into California by the 

 Franciscan Missions during the latter half of the 

 eighteenth century. At all the missions from San Diego 

 to Sonoma the same variety was cultivated practically 

 exclusively. This variety, now known generally as the 

 "Mission" or locally as the "California" and "El Paso," 

 reached California from Mexico through the Jesuit 

 missions of lower California. It seems probable that it 

 was brought over from Europe as early as the time of 

 Cortez but it has never been completely identified with 

 any European variety. It is very close to the Monica of 

 Sardinia which it resembles in its great vigor, heavy 

 growth, the form of its leaves, the size, shape, color, 

 texture, and flavor of its fruit, and differs principally 

 in the less dense indument of its foliage. It seems prob- 

 able that it is a seedling of this variety selected by the 

 padres on account of its close resemblance to its parent, 

 which is a favorite with the monks of Sardinia. It was 

 admirably adapted for the purposes of the missions, for 

 besides being a good table grape, keeping well and not 

 sensitive to primitive methods of handling, it could be 

 used for the manufacture of white or red wine and was 

 especially adapted to the production of a sweet wine 

 of sherry type. 



For a long time, even after the American occupation 

 of California, it remained the only variety grown in 

 vineyards, but, with the arrival of immigrants from 

 various grape-growing countries, other varieties were 

 introduced, and, at present, it is little grown in Cali- 

 fornia except as a good, cheap, easily handled table 

 grape for local supply and in some regions as an ingredi- 

 ent in the manufacture of sweet red and white wines. 

 It still forms the bulk of the vines grown on the Mexi- 

 can plateau and extends into New Mexico and south- 

 western Texas, but is gradually giving way even there 

 to varieties better adapted to special purposes. At 

 present, Zinfandel for wine, Muscat of Alexandria for 

 raisins, and Flame Tokay for shipping, constitute the 

 bulk of the grapes grown in California, although about 

 twenty-five varieties are grown on a large scale and over 

 twice that number in considerable commercial quanti- 

 ties. Including all the varieties which occasionally or 

 locally appear on the market as table, raisin or wine 

 grapes, there are over one hundred varieties of com- 

 mercial importance. 



All these varieties, with one or two unimportant 

 exceptions, belong to the European type, Vitis vinifera, 

 Varieties of V. Labrusca and other American types 

 grow vigorously and bear well except in the hottest 

 and driest sections, but the grapes are unsuited for 



