The Vineyard. 



67 



be the follOAving : Bore the hole with 

 a half inch auger through the posts at 

 the end?, the lowest one about twenty 

 incht'S from the ground; the second 

 about eighteen inches above it, and 

 the third eighteen inches above the 

 second. Draw the wire through the 

 hole at the end and fasten it to a cross 

 piece of wood about a foot long, and, 

 say, one inch thick. Then stretch the 

 wire along the posts, at the same 

 height, fastening it either with short 

 staples or four pennj" nails, drove in 

 cross wise, and draw it through the 

 other end post in the same manner, 

 fastening it also to a cross piece. By I 

 turning this cross piece, you can at 

 any time tighten or slacken the wire. 

 During summer, the wire expands, 

 ana you can then tighten it by simpl}^ 

 turning the cross piece. In winter, 

 the Avire w^ill contract, and you had 

 better slacken it in fall bj' unwinding 

 the cross pieces. 



When your trellis is ready, 3'ou can 

 tie your vines. We can give no 

 special rule for this, as it will, of 

 course, vary with the variety and 

 style of pruning of each. But a gen- 

 eral rule we can give, and this is : 

 Distribute your vines eo that no part 

 of them is crowded, but all can have 

 full benctit of sun and air, ISIever 

 cross a bearing arm or cane with an- 

 othei', but give the whole vine a fan 

 shape, leading all the young shoots, 

 destined for next years bearing, up to 

 the middle of the trellis. All the wood 

 should be tied to the two lower wires, 

 giving the canes a bend, if practicable, 

 and distributing them evenly. Tie 

 Avith willows^ if you have them ; if 

 not, strings or matting will do, but 

 1 tying should be done firmly, so that 



there is no giving way or breaking 

 of the ties when the vines become 

 loaded with their fruit. 



This is also the month for planting. 

 If your ground has been well prepar- 

 ed, this will be a comj:aratively easy 

 task. For marking, if 3'ou plant in 

 straight rows, use a common line, 

 which may be marked at the distance 

 you VNrish to plant, with a strip of rib- 

 bon tied into the line. Tou can then 

 stretch it along the row, and put down 

 a small stake, where each plant is to 

 be. Be careful, on sloping ground, to 

 leave spaces for surface drains, every 

 6th, 8th or 10th row, according to the 

 steepness of the slope. The steeper 

 the hill-sides, the more frequent must 

 be the surface drains. These should 

 run parallel with the hill-side, and the 

 water be carried off into principal 

 drains, descending the hill at suitable 

 places. 



But if we intend to plant^ our 

 first requisite is, — the plants them- 

 selves. And here let us say a few 

 words about them. 



If you have not grown them your- 

 self, get them from none but leliable 

 establishments. They should be pro- 

 cui'cd in fall, and carefully heeled in^ 

 as then you will have them ready 

 Avheneveryou want them. But at any 

 rate, if you have not ordered in fall, 

 get them early enough in spring. Get 

 first class one year old vines ; they are 

 much the best plants, and. you should 

 get only the best. It is poor economy 

 to pa}' 10, 20, or even 40 dullars less 

 for second class plants, loose half your 

 vines and a whole seasons crop. Get 

 them where you can rely upon their 

 hQing true to name; and, if you can 

 have your choice, take either plants 



