VINE. 



VINE. 



man invasion, as neither Cesar, Pliny, nor 

 Tacitus notice it in the description of Great 

 Britain. Bede informs us, that in the com- 

 mencement of the eightli century the cultiva- 

 tion of the vine had made some progress in 

 Great Britain : vines are mentioned in the laws 

 of Alfred. History, indeed, amply proves, that 

 for a long series of ages vineyards were com- 

 mon in the southern parts of England, and that 

 the quantity of wine produced from them was 

 so great as to be considered one of the staple 

 products of the land. Lambarde (Topographi- 

 cal Dictionary of England) informs us, that at 

 Hailing, near Rochester, the bishop's vineyard 

 yielded such excellent wine, that a present of 

 it was sent to Edward II. when he was at 

 Bakingfield. There was a royal vineyard at 

 Rockingham, in the fifth year of King Stephen ; 

 and William of Malmsbury, speaking of the 

 vale of Gloucester, says, " this district, too, 

 exhibits a greater number of vineyards than 

 any other county in England, yielding abund- 

 ant crops, and of superior quality." The same 

 author also says, that in the isle of Ely the 

 soil is "covered with vines, which either trail 

 along the ground or are trained on high, and 

 supported on poles." In the time of Richard^ 

 II., also, the vine grew so plentifully in Wind- 

 sor Little Park, that part of the wine made 

 there was sold for the king's profit. From 

 some cause or other, however, the cultivation 

 of the vine has fallen into general neglect, 

 although, good grapes might be grown on vines 

 trained as espaliers, or in the same manner as 

 in the vineyards abroad, from which excellent 

 wine could be made, at a cost that would not 

 exceed that of moderately strong beer. Why 

 vineyards should have so completely disap- 

 peared, it is difficult to say, since there are 

 many thousands of acres of poor land that are 

 of little value in an agricultural point of view, 

 but on which vines would flourish, and pro- 

 duce abundant crops of grapes, and yield there- 

 by a most profitable return. 



Fruit-bearing Powers of the Vine. From a 

 long course of experiments, Mr. Hoare has 

 computed the following scale of the greatest 

 quantity of grapes which any vine can per- 

 fectly mature, in proportion to the circum- 

 ference of its stem measured just above the 

 ground. 



Circum. 



3 inches 



2* 



5 



- 10 



- 15 



- 20 



- 25 



- 30 



- 35 



- 40 



7 inches 



8* - 



No vine should be suffered to ripen fruit 

 until its stem measures 3 inches in girt. In 

 general, vines are allowed to bear a much 

 greater quantity of grapes than the above. scale 

 represents, but in all such cases it will be 

 found that they are not perfectly ripened ; and 

 moreover, by producing a superabundance of 

 fruit, the plants are crippled for many years. 



Aspect. The warmer the aspect, the greater 

 perfection does the grape attain in the climate 

 of England, provided all other circumstances 

 are alike; and if the greatest quantity of the 

 sun's rays shining on the surface of a wall 



were alone to be considered as constituting the 

 best aspect, there would, of course, be no dif- 

 ficulty in naming a due southern one as better 

 than any other. But warmth alone is not suffi- 

 ! cient; shelter from the withering influence of 

 i the wind is equally necessary. The best as- 

 i pects are those that range from the eastern to 

 the southeastern, both inclusive. The next 

 best are those from southeast to south. 4 



Soil. The natural soil which is most con- 

 genial to the growth of the vine, and to the 

 perfection of its fruit in this country, is a light, 

 porous, rich, sandy loam, not more than 18 

 inches in depth, on a dry bottom of gravel, 

 stones, or rocks. A strong argillaceous soil is 

 injurious to the vine : it checks the expansion 

 of the roots, and retains too much moisture. 

 In calcareous soils the vine always flourishes, 

 especially if the bottom be stony or gravelly. 

 No subsoil can possess too great a quantity of 

 these materials for the roots of the vine, which 

 run with eagerness into all the clefts, crevices, 

 and openings in which such subsoils abound. 

 In these dry and warm situations, the fibrous 

 extremities, pushing themselves with the great- 

 est avidity, and continually branching out in 

 every possible direction, lie secure from that 

 excess of moisture which frequently accumu- 

 lates in more compact soils ; and, clinging like 

 ivy round the porous surfaces of their retreats, 

 extract therefrom a species of food, more nou- 

 rishing than that obtained by them under any 

 other circumstances whatever. All borders, 

 therefore, made expressly for the reception of 

 vines, ought to be composed of a sufficient 

 quantity of dry materials, such as stones and 

 brickbats, broken moderately small, lumps of 

 old mortar, broken pottery, oyster shells, &c., 

 to enable the roots to extend themselves freely 

 in their search after food and nourishment; to 

 keep them dry and warm by the free admission 

 of air and solar heat, and to admit of heavy 

 rains passing quickly through, without being 

 retained sufficiently long to saturate the roots, 

 and thereby injure their tender extremities. 

 The sweepings obtained from a turnpike road, 

 or from any other high road kept in a good 

 state of repair by the frequent addition of 

 stones, and on which there is a considerable 

 traffic of horses or other cattle, is the very best 

 compost that can be added to any border in- 

 tended for the reception of vines. Its compo- 

 nent parts, consisting chiefly of sand, gravel, 

 pulverized stones, and the residuum of dung 

 and urine, afford a greater quantity of food, 

 and of a richer and more lasting nature, than 

 can be found in any other description of com- 

 post that I have ever seen or heard of being 

 used for that purpose. Borders in which vines 

 are planted should never be cropped nor digged. 

 Manure. The best species of manure for the 

 vine are those which afford a considerable de- 

 j gree of nourishment, but at the same time 

 i slowly decompose in the soil. Such are bones, 

 I whole or crushed, the horns and hoofs of cat- 

 | tie, the entire carcasses of animals, cuttings of 

 ! leather, woollen rags, feathers, and hair, and 

 the leaves of the vines themselves. Liquid 

 manures are also valuable, and forcing in their 

 effect; of this class the most powerful are 

 urine, soot-water, blood, the drainings of dung- 



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