GRAPE 



673 



L^ 



wire fence, as shown in Fig. 909; but the Knifftu system 

 omits the bottom wire. 



The vineyardists of the Chautauqua Grape belt have 

 developed a mode of pruning and training of Grapes 

 which has many features peculiar to that district. The 

 trellis is made of two wires, of No. 9 or No. 10 gauge, 

 and chestnut posts. The posts are from 6 to 8 feet in 

 length, and cost 1 cent per lineal foot at the railroad 

 station. In later years, since experience has shown how 

 important air and sunshine are in ripenini^ the fruit, 

 8-foot posts are most coiiii]i..iily n^. .1. (.r;i|i.- jio^i^ 



should be somewhat heavirr tIi.im li . i.mni'Mily u-nl 



for wire fence — from one-tliiid i.i .in.-lmli' hn ^,r-:tiHl 

 the heaviest should be sorti-.l mit t..r thr ■ihI I'lists. im- 



fanner ih . d ii.it bo told that they should be sharpened 

 Willi ;i iriii- li;i-l-pencil taper, excepting the crooked 

 uiu s, whi.h should be so beveled as to counteract the 

 crouk in driviii-. 



The usual distance apart for the posts in the row of 

 Grapes is one post to every three vines, or, in other 

 words, 27 feet, and for ease in stretching the wire, they 

 should be in as straight a line as possible. The posts 

 are driven, but a hole should first be made by an unusu- 

 ally large crowbar with a liulb near the lower end. 

 After the posts are stuck into tlie holes, they are most 



iently driven by the oi 

 which is hauled through th 

 weight of maul is 12 pounds, 

 to swing one of that size all • 

 monly used because they an- 

 an iron sh-11 till'-l \iith w 



of the p"^f I--- iI.:h. Ill,, in. I 



and! 



n a wagon 

 ;. A fair 

 good man 



fail 



eallv 



:iug the 



A vineyard should have a break or an alley at right 

 angles to the rows as often as every 50 Grape vines, for 

 the purpose of dumping Grape brush and shortening 

 the trip when hauling fruit. If the vineyard is in fair 

 thrift, longer rows will give so much brush as to be in- 

 ■convenient in hauling out. 



The end posts should not only be the largest of the 

 lot, but should also be well braced. The most common 

 mode is the "hj'potenuse brace," consisting of a stiff 

 rail or a 4x4 scantling 12 feet long, with one end 

 notched into the post about midway between the two 

 wires, and the other end resting on the ground against 

 a 2-foot peg of about the same size as the end post. 



The wires (two wires in the Chautauqua trellis) 



should be strung on the windward side 

 >f the post; that is, on the side from which 

 :he prevailiiii,' « iiul'i come. This is very 

 important v, In ii rli. w iiid is blowing at 30 

 ;o 4U mil. ^ 111 1m mr, and the vines have 

 sails ..t niiiiN -.|iMi. t. .-t of foliage, and 

 i-iii ".- 1' ml 1..UV tons ..f fruit per 



...sis sh.iiil.l 1..- of hard 

 ; then fence staples will 

 The bottom trellis wire 



d from 28 to 32 inches 



mg it may nut I.. 111..1. iIihl _' 1 inches 

 above the lowrr win . .ni.l >..ii h\ year be 

 raised to 30 and :.J in h. - li 1, nut advis- 

 able to go mor. 

 out putting ii 

 Each spring 1 

 and the upper ■ 



■__ I of the br.aces w 



these faults sli. 



fore tying up tli 



A large part oi 



winter months— some beginnii 



crop is harvested. Two grade 



in this operation — the skilled and the, uu.skiUed. 

 man of skill, or the expert, goes ahead and blocks out. 

 He stands in front of a vine of far more tangled brush 

 than that seen in Fig. 962, and, at a glance, tells by a 

 judgment ripened by much observation, just how many 

 buds are required to ballast and not over-ballast the 

 vine for another year. As the expert stands before the 

 vine making the estimate, ho might be likened to a man 

 w. -1-11:111.' a ham Willi si.-.lyar.ls, ).u.sliing the weight 

 l.i.'k w iir.l ;ii:.l f. .rwar. 1, ii..i<li l.\ ii..i..li. finding the point 



1 a middle or third wire. 

 aany of the posts will sag, 

 vire will be slack, and many 

 viU I..' cut of i.la.'e. All of 



1..11I.I 1. .1 just be- 



uiployed 



shears. 



akes 



th( 



passes all wood is severed fr. 

 the number of buds desired ti 

 are left. The unskilled help, 

 dollar a day less than the ex^ 

 cutting the tendrils and other par 



Mll"iTlg"ly wild 



11- vine, but 

 iiiuilier year 

 s jiossibiy a 

 the expert, 

 rine that are 



attached to anything but the trellis. The next process 

 is "stripping" the brush, and it is one involving brute 

 force, ragged clothes and leather mittens. If the laborer 



does not put on a ragged suit, he will be apt to have 

 one before he is done with his job. There is a little 

 knack even in doing this work to the best advantage. 

 The dismembered vines still htng to the upper trellis 

 and often cling with considerable tenacity, and a par- 

 ticular jerk or yank, more easily demonstrated than de- 



