Under draining and Surface Draining. 



113 



with some varieties, it will generally 

 be advisable to leave only the strong- 

 est, and remove the balance. Do not 

 think that you can do part of it a little 

 later, but be unsparing in taking awaj- 

 all you intend to take this time. You 

 Avill not find it so easy the second 

 time, and by leaving anything you in- 

 tend to take off some other time, you 

 are squandering the strength of your 

 vine. Destroy all the caterpillars, 



and all the insects you find feeding on 

 the vines, the steel blue beetle, who 

 will eat into the buds ; but protect the 

 lady-bug, mantis, and all the friends 

 of the vine. 



In our next issue we intend to de- 

 scribe the second and third operations 

 of summer pruning, and hope, by that 

 time, to have received communica- 

 tions from our friends upon this im- 

 portant subject. 



Clkvelan'u, Feb. -l' , 'liO. 



I have received the first two num- 

 bers of your Grape Culturist, and am 

 much pleased with it. In looking 

 over your January number I find that 

 Mr. Werth, in speaking of the descen- 

 dants of the Vitis Labrusca, leads us 

 to think that they will prosper best 

 in wet imdrained soils. I must dis- 

 agree with him, that is in our climate, 

 which is on the south shore of Lake 

 Erie, and soil, stiff clay, underlaid 

 with shale at the depth of three to four 

 feet ; we find that there is nothing so 

 injurious to the vine as wet feet. We 

 have vineyards that were well under- 

 drained, but not that attention paid 

 to surface drainage as there ought to 

 be, that were nearly ruined in one 

 season ; and I would say to every 

 Yineyardist who wishes to succeed, 

 first of all see that your land is Avell 

 underdrained if the soil requires it ; 

 and the next thing, which is of much 

 more importance, keep oft' your sur- 

 face water, and on level lands where 

 the water runs off" slowly, and the soil 

 is of clay, ridge up your rows before 



planting; continue to keep the centre 

 of your rows the lowest forever after, 

 and you will find that your vines will 

 be healthier, your wood will ripen, 

 and the fruit be much richer in sac- 

 charine matter. John Spalding. 



We cordially agree with friend 

 Spalding, and think that underdrain- 

 ing and surface draining are essential 

 to the health of our vineyards. It will 

 not do to say, because the Labrusca 

 in its wild state grows in swamjis, 

 we should also have our vineyards of 

 that class in low, swampy lands. But 

 we think that the Labrusca family 

 generally needs a deeper, uniformly 

 moist soil, than the Aestivalis, who 

 prefer a warmer and dryer soil. But 

 if anything is calculated to keep the 

 soil uniformly moist, not wet, it is un- 

 derdraining and deep tillage. This, we 

 think our Richmond correspondent 

 meant to imply, and therefore we ad- 

 vise : Plant the Labrusca, as a general 

 rule, on your eastern and northeastern 

 slopes, with their deep, rich soil, and 

 the .^Estivalis on southern and south- 

 western slopes. — Ed. 



