16 SECOND THOUSAND QUESTIONS IN AGRICULTURE 



some other crop for a year or two, especially if legumes are grown 

 as you suggest. If not, then a crop requiring deep plowing and 

 good summer cultivation such as peas or beans or potatoes would 

 bring the land into better shape for tree planting. 



Uprooting Grape Vines. 



Which is the best and cheapest way to remove the vines? Do you 

 advise blasting? 



The most rapid arrangement for pulling vines is what is called 

 the "vine puller," made of a pair of strong wagon wheels with a 

 long pole, four by six pine scantling 12 ft. long, with strong iron 

 hook on one end. Allow the end with the hook to project 18 in. 

 beyond the axle of the wheel and bolt the pole down to the axle. Hitch 

 a short chain around the vine stump; hook into this chain by raising 

 the long end of the pole; start the horse to pull down the pole which 

 lifts the vine and it is dragged out as the wheels proceed. If the soil 

 is very heavy or if there is hardpan beneath a loamy top soil, blasting 

 is desirable. 



Bees and Grapes. 



We let an apiarian put hives of bees under some trees in the middle 

 of our 90-acre vineyard. Our Italian workingmen say that the bees 

 will pierce the skin of the grapes for the sugar and those grapes so 

 injured will dry up and cause us a loss of at least 20 tons before time 

 for harvesting the crop. Is this true? 



All careful experiments known to us have demonstrated that 

 honey bees will not, and perhaps cannot, puncture the whole skin of 

 a grape, but if the skin is broken, even with a pin-puncture they will 

 help themselves to the contents, if other food is not available. The 

 inference would be that if other insects, birds, etc., are present and 

 puncture the skin, the bees will do the rest. 



Pruning Neglected Vines. 



./ ftave rented for one year only a vineyard of wine grapes that' 

 was not pruned last year. Tell me how to prune them to get a crop 

 this year. They are 9 years old and in fairly good shape. 



To get fruit this year you must save the lowest cane which grew 

 last year; shorten that to save the two lowest buds and cut away all 

 the two-year-old cane which grew beyond the point where it started. 

 You can prune the vine just as you would have pruned it the year 

 before, but if you do that you will get cane growth where it ought 

 to be but you will get no fruit this year. You will get a great break 

 of new canes from the old wood probably and should rub off all but 

 the best ones for the subsequent building of the vine. 



Treating Vine Stakes. 



Do you believe that an asphaltum-crudc-oil-coated-stake would be 

 injurious to young vine roots one year old? 



