216 



The Grape Culturut. 



Telegraph and Hartford are coloring 

 at this date (the 19th of July.) For 

 an early market grape we know of 

 none, which would pay better than 

 Mary Ann. It Ip the earliest we have ; 

 we saw colored berries on it the 4th 

 of July; it is enormously productive, 

 healthy and hardy, always produces 

 fine bunches, hangs well to the stem, 

 and is of better quality than Hartford. 



"VVe think it premature however at 

 this early date to attempt a full re- 

 port. We shall do so in September 

 and October, and hope all our friends 

 and readers will give us their expe- 

 rience in their localities. 



We may safel}- saj', however, that 

 to the true friends of grape culture, 

 those who take an interest in its pro- 

 gi*ess, a visit to our vineyards would 

 richly pay, and we hope to see a good 

 many of our friends here, where they 

 will find us ever ready and willing to 

 show them what we have, and demon- 

 strate our advice by actual fact. 



Editor. 



grapes about cincinnati. 



Geo. Husmann, Esq., Editor Grape 



Culturist : 



I promised some months ago to act 

 as your correspondent at Cincinnati 

 and keep 3'ou posted as to matters of 

 interest in the vine_yard in this region. 

 As this is my first communication, I 

 fear you have already put me down 

 as a very poor one. But I will try to 

 redeem the time in future, and besides 

 I can plead a good excuse, for with a 

 hundred acres of grapes planted and 

 half that number in bearing; you will 

 agree with me that I have enough on 

 my hands to keep one man busy, if 

 not to set him craz}'. Before pro- 



ceeding further I must pause to tell 

 you that we are all happy; all vine- 

 dom in this region is jubilant. Never 

 within the memorj'' of man, was such 

 a crop of grapes seen here. Every 

 thing is glorious, no mildew, no rot,, 

 no leaf blight, no vine destroying 

 insects. All varieties are doing equally 

 well. The delicate white grapes, the 

 Eebecca, Maxatawney, Cassad}', and 

 others which have always rotted here, 

 are this year perfect ; so of the lona, 

 Isi-aella and Martha. And the Cataw- 

 ba, our glorious old Catawba ; what 

 shall I say of that, perfectly healthy 

 in leaf and berry, and the 12th of 

 Jul}', are we not about out of the 

 woods 'i Is this prince of grapes not 

 about to be restored to us. I hope so, 

 for among all the new varieties, we 

 have not yet found one that has its 

 favor with the people. [Very natu- 

 ral, the people do not know them long- 

 enough. Ed.] 



Our season thus far has been just 

 what every grape grower would have, 

 mild and temjjerate, with no scalding 

 showers, and this applies to the great 

 grape region of Ohio and Kentucky,, 

 from all parts of which I have infor- 

 mation, and the testimony is univer- 

 sal, that there has been no disease, a 

 great absence of insects, with an un- 

 bounded crop. Old Catawba vine- 

 3'ards, that have not had a crop in 

 man}^ 3'ears are hanging full ; truly 

 the year of jubilee has come! 



I am glad to notice that you are 

 giving up a part of your first love for 

 the Concord and dividing it with the 

 Ives. This 3'ou will not regret, for 

 if ever a grape was grown, that is 

 perfectly healthy, hardy and produc- 

 tive, it is the Ives. I have counted one 



