Tying. 31 



easily contrive some device for relieving the tension, 

 if he should think it necessary. As a matter of 

 practice, however, the wires soon stretch and sag 

 enough with the burden of fruit and vines to take 

 up the winter contraction, and most growers do not 

 release the wires in fall. It will be found neces- 

 sary, in fact, to tighten the wires and to straighten 

 up the posts from year to year, as they become 

 loose. It is always a profitable labor to tamp the 

 ground firmly about all the posts every spring. The 

 wires should always be kept tight during the grow- 

 ing season to prevent the whipping of the vines by 

 wind. This is especially important in white grapes, 

 which are discolored by the rubbing of leaves and 

 twigs. Unless the vines are very strong it will be 

 necessary to stretch only one wire the first winter. 



Trellises are often made of slats, as shown in 

 Fig. 18, but these are always less durable than the 

 wire trellises and more expensive to keep in repair ; 

 and in the older portions of the country, where 

 timber is dear, they are also more expensive at the 

 outset. They catch the wind, and, not being held 

 together by continuous strands, are likely to blow 

 down in sections. Fuller particulars concerning 

 the styles of trellis are given in the discussions of 

 the different systems of training. 



Tying. Probably the best material for tying the 

 canes and shoots to the trellis is raffia. This is a 

 bast-like material which comes in skeins and which 

 can be bought of seedsmen and nurserymen for 



