356 



MONTHLY JOURNAL OF AGRICULTURE. 



vas found and brought under cultivaliou by 

 tr. Hulings, in Elsrinborougli, in New-Jersey, 

 \\ here, undoubledly, it was indigenous. 



Soil and Situation.— The Isabella grape- 

 vine flourishes best m a soil that is neither 

 j-Qor nor exceedingly rich, rather loose than 

 t:< mpact, moderately moist, uistead of being 

 wet or very dry, and is fi-ee fiom an excess 

 of salts, pernicious gases, and corruption ; and 

 in general, land recently cleared of wood is 

 preferable to that which has been for some 

 time under tillage. The siUiation should be 

 chosen on mocterately rising ground, rathei- 

 than on that which is plain or abruptly steep, 

 and the aspect should be inclined toward the 

 south or east, sheltered both from the wind 

 and intense heat of the sun, particularly du- 

 ring the latter half of the day, but not so mnch 

 BO as to impede a free circulation of air. The 

 climate should be rather dry than moist, and 

 warm instead of being cold. A doctrine ad- 

 vanced by various authors is, that the region 

 of the maize and peach culture is also that of 

 the wine-bearing grape of Europe. By parity 

 of reason, the Isabella, and several other vari- 

 eties, which are equally or more hardy than 

 the European species, nray be successfnlly 

 cultivated fiom Mexico to those parts of 

 America where the maize, or Indian com, is 

 to be considered & sure crop ; that is, they 

 will succeed along the shores of the Atlantic, 

 in any parallel snuthwaid of the forty-thiixl 

 degree of latitude, and much farther to the 

 northward, west of the Rocky Mountams. — 

 The Isabella will also often prosper under 

 cii-cumstances considerably at variance with 

 any of those above stated, bnt its fiTiit will 

 Jiot be of so fine a quality, nor so rich in its 

 ilavor. 



Propagation and Management. The 



Vitis labrusca Isabella, like all its congeners, 

 may be propagated from seeds, by cuttings or 

 layers, and by grafting or inoculation ; but the 

 mode almost universally adopted is by cut- 

 tings fmm the ])ranches and roots. A simi)le, 

 detailed account of the growth of a vine, from 

 its separation from the parent stem to the pe- 

 riod of perfecting its fruit, perhaps will con- 

 vey the best idea of the process, and we will 

 offer the following, as deduced fiom experi- 

 ence : 



It was the opinion of L. Junius Moderatus 

 iColum(;lla, a distinguished writer on husbaud- 

 i-y, who flourished more than eighteen hun- 

 ■dred vears ago, and who owned an extensive 

 Ahievaid in that part of Old Spain now called 

 Arragon, that no kind of land whatever can 

 be fruitfnl unless it be diligeiUiy. carefully and 

 skillfully tilled, more especially when em- 

 X)loyed for vineyards- " For a vine," said he, 

 " is a delicate, tender and weak thing, and 

 can by no means bear with hard iisagi- ; and, 

 for th'.i most part, it is consumed by too much 

 labor, and bearing too gieiit a quantity of 

 fruit ; and, if you do not restiain it within due 

 bounds, it jx-rislies by its own fruitfniness. — 

 But when it has, in some measvire, strcMigth- 

 oned and hardened iUelf, and attained, as it 

 (740) 



were, to the vigor of youth, it mny prosper 

 under neglect. Bnt a young vineyard, whUo 

 it is growing up, unless it receives duo caro 

 and attention, will be reduced to the poorest 

 and most sta'"\mg condition, and will pine and 

 Waste away hi such a manner that it can never 

 afterward, by any experience whatsoever, be 

 recovered and restored. Tiierefore, the foun- 

 dations, as it were, must be laid with tho 

 greatest care ; and, from the first day of jdant- 

 ing, it must be managed like hifants, with un- 

 ceasing attention — which, unle.=,s we do, all 

 our expenses will be laid out to no pur[)ose, 

 nor can the proper season of anything l.)e re- 

 called when unce we let it puss." First, then, 

 let us select a jn'opcr site of ground, and pro- 

 ceed at once and trench it to the full depth 

 required. If it be situated on a plain, or in a 

 valley, it shouki be dug two feet in dejdh, 

 and on rising groimd three ; but on a hill-side, 

 somewhat steeper, it should bo turned up at 

 least four feet, in order that the i-oots may 

 penetrate beyond the reach of drouth. If the 

 ctiltiugs are intended to be planted in dnlls 

 or rows, let there be formed trenches three 

 feet in length, two feet in depth, and tiie 

 width of a spade — leaving intervals or baulks, 

 a yard in length, betv.een tho tienches, till 

 the row is fini.ihed. Then, with good virgin 

 soil, if it be at liaud — if not, let it be procured 

 from tlK> woods — let us fill the trenches there- 

 with, mixing it at the same time wth a due 

 ])i'o])orlion of leafmoidd tn- well-rotted ma- 

 nure, or, what is still better, the leaves and 

 husks of vines, or grape-seeds, in order to 

 quicken and strengthen the growth of ti:e 

 l)lanls. If a vineyard be tho object which 

 we have in view, let the rows or drUls be 

 trenched fioiu five to ten ieet asunder, accord- 

 ing to the surface of the ground a-nl the lati- 

 tude of the place. If the situation be on a 

 plain, in a high defci"ee of latitude, the rows 

 should be eight or ten feet apart ; but if it be 

 on the side of a veiy steep hiU, or in a low 

 degree of latinide, five feet will be sulKcient; 

 and on moderately inclined surfaces, or in 

 higher latitudes, six or eight feet apart will 

 i)(^ all that is required. With regard to the 

 direction of the rows, and the hight to which 

 the vines should be tiained. they may nm in 

 a manner that will allow them to face any 

 point of the horizon between smith and east; 

 and they may be supported on props, or trel- 

 lises from six to ten feet in liiglit, and even 

 more, according to the vigor ef the vinc.>. — 

 lUit in cities, and about houses in tiie coiuitry, 

 single vines may be trained on the sides and 

 ends of buildings, along the side's of fences, or 

 on the trunks and branches of trees. 



The most favorable season for planting the 

 Isabella grajjc-vine in the United States is 

 wluni the red-flowered maple is in bloom, 

 which usually occurs in (Jooi-gia from the "^Oth 

 to the last of Fi-'-ruaiy, and five or six weeks 

 later iiear l'hilad> Iplii.i and N"rw-York. lii 

 selecting the cuttings for a vineyard, they 

 slioulil be of one variety, and taken fiom the 

 most fiuitful pait of the vine. Let us not coii- 



