XXXII. SPECIAL VINE CROPS 



SOME of the vine crops are not very closely related, but for 

 convenience they are grouped together here. Some of those that 

 we shall discuss now are grapes, hops, black pepper, and vanilla. 



Grapes. Raising grapes is a most important industry. The 

 grape is one of the oldest cultivated plants, and was known to the 

 ancient Greeks and Romans, and also to the Egyptians. The 

 Scuppernong, the Catawba, and the Concord have been developed 

 from varieties that were found growing wild in this country. It 

 is said that the first attempt at growing grapes in this country 

 was made by a Frenchman at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1610; and 

 since then their culture has spread all over the United States. 

 Large quantities of grapes are raised in New York, Ohio, Vir- 

 ginia, Missouri, the Southern States, California, New Mexico, and 

 Arizona. California leads all the States in grape culture, both 

 as to quality as well as to quantity. Some of the varieties 



grown there are of 

 European origin, 

 but the white Mus- 

 catel, which is so 

 largely grown, was 

 brought to Califor- 

 nia from Chile. 



Grapevines are 

 propagated from 

 cuttings and lay- 

 ers, and grow best 

 in warm fertile 

 soils, with sunny 



Vineyard, California. 



exposure and not 



too much moisture. The varieties found in the eastern part of 

 the United States are usually trained to trellises or stakes or 

 to run over arbors, but in California each vine stands alone and 

 generally without any support. 



214 



