TEE GENESEE FARMER. 



28» 



them like the common locust. My beets and carrots 

 yielded over 500 bushels to the acre, measuring the 

 whole ground, notwithstanding the small part of the 

 ground occupied by them. 



In the spring of 1856, 1 enclosed my vineyard, and 

 have followed the same course. The past spring, 

 1857, I used the plow and cultivator again, and 

 planted two rows of carrots between each two rows 

 of vines. I pulled off the suckers that came up 

 from the roots as fast as they appeared ; allowed all 

 the branches to grow till the fruit clusters appeared. 

 I then trained up perpendicularly about every alter- 

 nate branch from the horizontal vines, and cut off all 

 the rest from the old wood ; those which had no fruit 

 on, close, and the others about two leaves above the 

 fruit, pulling off all the lateral branches from the 

 shoots I threw up. In the forepart of July, and 

 again about the last, I went over them, and twined 

 np all the perpendicular branches, and pulling off all 

 the side shoots, and cutting off all above the trellis. 

 In this way I have taken off about half of this year's 

 growth, allowing nothing to grow that is not wanted 

 for the maturing of this year's fruit, or producing 

 fruit next year. My trellises are now completely 

 filled, most of the upright branches having reached 

 the top, and been cut off. The grapes look fine, and 

 will produce, I think, about one bushel to eight vines. 

 During the winter I intend to cut off close all 

 branches except those I have twined up, and perhaps 

 a part of them, as I think they aje too thick; and 

 hereafter I can renew these perpendicular branches, 

 by allowing new ones to grow when I think best. 



I find that Mr. MgKat, of Naples, in this county, 

 and other vine-growers, do not let their vines bear at 

 this age; and perhaps his course is better in the end. 

 Mr. McK. is certainly very good authority; but I am 

 not fond of long credits, and am too fond of grapes 

 to miss any opportunity to eat of my own raising. I 

 thhik my vines are too close to each other for rich 

 land; and if I had to do the work again, I should 

 make the rows at least ten feet apart, and the vines 

 about twelve feet in the rows, and should allow but 

 two branches from a root, and train them horizontal- 

 ly each way till they meet, and then perpendicularly. 



Next year I shall allow the vines to monopolize 

 the whole ground, using the cultivator often. I think 

 the three kinds I have mentioned require about the 

 same kind of culture, but it is useless to try to make 

 much of the Catawba here, unless you can give it 

 some extra heat, as it will not ripen on the average 

 more than once in three years in ordinary exposures. 

 Oa the south or east side of a building, or high, tight 

 fence, with a warm, rich soil, you will generally suc- 

 ceed. Of the Isabella little need be said. It is doubt- 

 less the grape for this region. The Clinton is at home 

 here, being early, hardy, and productive, and mine 

 are of a fine flavor; but I have tasted them from 

 other vines, looking and growing like mine, that were 

 like those the fox couldn't reach, " poor sour things." 

 I think they are not genuine. I have a few other 

 kinds which I tolerate for the sake of variety — one 

 of them, the Connecticut Wild, is a large, hardy, ear- 

 ly kind — excellent for cooking, makes good Port 

 wine, but worthless for eating, and drops off when 

 ripe. I have never seen the Charter Oak, Concord, 

 Rebecca, or Northern Muscadine, but shall get one 

 or two of the last mentioned next spring, if I can. 



A word more on manuring, and I have done. I 

 think, and I have good authority for saying, that if 



the leaves and branches from the summer pruninga 

 arc immediately covered, even slightly, with earth, no 

 other manure need be added to keep up the fertility, 

 as the nutriment of the fruit is furnished through th« 

 leaves and branches, they must contain, if cut white 

 in full vigor, all the nutriment necessary for the fruit; 

 and if buried at once in the soil, a greater share of 

 it will be retained for the use of the plant. The nu- 

 triment in these unripe prunings will be more readi- 

 ly assimilated than that from the ripe autumn foliage. 

 I have practiced on this principle with my Rhubarb 

 or Pieplant, (a plant akin to the grape in its acid 

 quality,) requiring all the leaves and refuse of the 

 stalks used to be immediately placed under the re- 

 maining leaves in the hill, where the gases escaping 

 from their decomposition come into contact with the 

 living plant, and the mineral part will sink into the 

 ground, and reach the roots, and with scarcely any 

 other manuring, have measured leaves 29 inches 

 broad, and have just counted over seventy-five fully 

 developed leaves on a single hill that has been fully 

 cut from till the middle of July. Agbicola. 



Gorham, Ontario Co., J\\ Y. 



IN MY "NEW GAKDEN."-NO. 3. 



These very warm days are of rather too ardent a 

 temperature for your invalid scribbler, but they are 

 just the thing for "My New Garden." Mornings 

 and evenings, and the cloudy days rather frequent of 

 late, generally find me there, for there is abundant op- 

 portunity for work at this season of the year. I now 

 sit down to my pen after using the hoe until weaiy 

 enough. You know that handsome but trouhl©- 

 some weed, 



PuRSLAiN. — The dictionary says it is " an annual 

 plant of the genus Portulacca, with fleshy, succulent 

 leaves, often used as a pot-herb, and for salads, gar- 

 nishing, and pickling." I wish there was a demand 

 for it for any of these purposes in this neighborhood. 

 I could soon grow a sufficient supply. It is some- 

 times used for coloring purphsh blue — a fast, but 

 homely hue for stockings, etc., costmg but a trifle for 

 dye-stuffs. Purslain is quick to grow and slow to 

 die, and one must be sure its roots touch no moist 

 ground, or, like " that old fellow so much was about 

 in the newspapers," it starts up and exclaims, " I ain't 

 dead yet !" and you have all your work to do over 

 again. Hoe it up and rake it off, and you have done 

 with one crop, at least, although another will start 

 up in a day or two, if the ground once gets seeded. 



Cabbage and Cauliflowek. — What plants the 

 cutworms left are doing well; the cabbages beginning 

 to head out. Either the seed was wrongly labelled, 

 or I made a great mistake in remembering where_ I 

 sowed it, for cauliflowers prove cabbages and vice 

 versa. So please correct your understanding of_ the 

 growth of the two, as mentioned in No. 2, for it is 

 the cabbages that come up and grow so rapidly— and 

 that were the least troubled with insects. 



Second Crops — Are now growing in the place of 

 my bush and dwarf peas. I set cabbages among the 

 first, some weeks before they were removed, and sow- 

 ed turnips in the place of the latter, the last of July. 

 Though watered, my turnips vegetate but slowly, but 

 make a good growth as soon as up, and a portion are 

 now, Aug. 5th, m their third leaf. 



Celery — Is a new vegetable with me, my first 

 sowmg was last year, but the seed did not grow. This 



