THE GRAPE VINE. 73 



Take the same young vine and shift it into a well 

 and carefully drained pot not larger than 8 inches, in 

 a compost composed of a good, sound, rather light loam, 

 having a fourth part of thoroughly decomposed manure, 

 and a sprinkling of bone-meal and sand mixed with it. 

 Pot firmly, and place it on the surface of the plunging 

 material, or even on a shelf or the floor of a light 

 house, and grow it the whole time without bottom- 

 heat, and the result is a potful of beautiful well- 

 ripened fibrous roots, that keep fresh through the 

 winter in such quantity that when they are shaken 

 out of the soil for planting in spring, the pot appears 

 to have been full of roots and nothing else. There is 

 no comparison between these two descriptions of vines 

 for planting. All is in favour of the latter, of course. 

 Avoid, therefore, in growing young vines, badly-drained 

 pots, a close retentive soil, and bottom-heat after they 

 are well rooted. 



All summer they should be grown on at an average 

 temperature of 70 at night, with from 10 to 20 

 more by sun-heat in the afternoon for a while when 

 shut up. No check for lack of water should ever be 

 risked while in a growing state ; for besides other evils, 

 they will, if not well supplied with water both at the 

 root and in the atmosphere, be very subject to the 

 ravages of red-spider. Of light, the grand consoli- 

 dating and ripening agent, they should -have as much 

 as possible. All vines grown in the shade of other 

 vines, or anything else, should be avoided. The lateral 

 growth should be kept regularly stopped to one bud, 

 and the vines stopped at 5 feet. They are often al- 

 lowed to grow longer, but it is a mistake, inasmuch as 

 the buds lower down the vine, where the permanent 

 growths generally start, are never so strong and plump 



