290 



The Grape Culturiat. 



CORNUCOPIA. 



Arnold's Hybrid, Xo. 2. 



This is, from all the information we 

 can gather, and from samples of the 

 fruit sent by Mr. Arnold last fall, one 

 of the most promising of his seedlings. 

 "We have his five Hybrids (Nos. 1, 2, 

 5, 8, 16), growing side by side in the 

 experimental vineyard here, and this is 

 the most vigorous and healthy of them 

 .all, plainly showing Clinton origin, 

 though much superior to it in quality. 

 It i^ a hybrid of Clinton with black 

 St. Peters, and originated with Mr. 

 Charles Arnold, of Canada. We give 

 his description: "Bunch medium, 

 shouldered, compact; berry medium, 

 black, with beautiful bloom ; flavor ex- 

 cellent, pleasant and sprightly; skin 

 thin; seeds large, bearing nearly the 



same proportion to size of berry as 

 Clinton. Flesh melting, with very lit- 

 tle pulp, if any ; seems to burst in the 

 mouth; all juice, with a little acid and 

 astringency ; ripens with Concord. 

 A good market grape and a good 

 keeper." 



The accompanying cut was kindly 

 furnished for our use by Mr. Arnold. 

 We can only add, that if these Hybrids 

 improve as much by change of location 

 as other Northern grapes have done, 

 and should prove healthy -and hardy 

 here, we consider them groat acquisi- 

 tions, especially to our list of ivine 

 grapes, as at least four of them seem 

 to contain all the requisites for making 

 fine wine. 



OCTOBER. 



WORK FOR THE :SI O N T II 



This month will, to some extent, be 

 taken up by wine making, of which we 

 have already treated in a separate arti- 

 cle in the September number. After 

 j'^our vines have yielded their crops, and 

 the first frosts have stripped them of 

 their leaves, give them another plowing, 

 throwing the ground well up around the 

 vines. Tender varieties should be 

 pruned first, then bent down along the 

 trellis, a few shovels full of earth thrown 

 on them to keep them in their position, 

 and then well covered with the plow. 

 This should be done with all varieties 

 which are even of doubtful hardiness, 

 and will richly repay every season, as 

 the vines generally suffer more or less 



every winter, especially after a summer 

 so unusually wet as the last, and in 

 which grape diseases were so prevalent. 

 Such seasons the wood never ripens so 

 thoroughly, and is, consequently, more 

 susceptible of frost. Plowing in fall 

 has several advantages : 1st. All the 

 leaves are covered up, will rot under 

 the vines, and are just the kind of ma- 

 nure—in fact, in most cases the only 

 one which the vine needs. 2d. It throws 

 the ground well up against the vines, 

 thus being a partial protection to them, 

 leaving a furrow as a surface drain in 

 the middle of the row, to carry off the 

 water. 3d. It pulverizes the soil, leav- 

 ing it exposed to the influence of frost. 



