2«'0 



The Grape Culturist. 



trimmed out, and about half a ton of 

 leaves and young shoots cut off, and 

 this was denominated summer pruning. 

 What wonder that the functions of the 

 plant become disturbed, and a diseased 

 condition induced. 



In the youno- vineyard of a gentle- 

 man of considerable order and taste, 

 the two-year old vines had not been 

 regularly tied up. In the beginning of 

 August time was taken to touch up the 

 vineyard. The leading shoots were 

 tied up to the stakes quite trim and 

 neat, but two thirds of the leaves and 

 young growth was lopped off, and still 

 the vines were held up as models of 

 neatness. Is it any marvel that the 

 Concord is exhibiting indications of 

 disease ? 



It seems so hard to got men to 

 fully comprehend what is meant by 

 pruning at all, and ^vhat is meant b}^ 

 summer pruning in ])articular. In 

 mistaken ideas upon this point there 

 is much danger, and care must be 

 taken to discriminate between that 

 timel}' control and direction of the 

 young growth that is, perhaps, mis- 

 takenly called summer pruning, and 

 that merciless destruction of the most 

 active workers in the economy of the 

 vine, of which we have given illustra- 

 tions. 



Just think of a vine engaged in 

 perfecting a ton of grapes, and we 

 must conceive of a vast drain on its 

 resources; then, while in the act of 

 completing the task, a half ton of 

 the organs that elaborate the mate- 

 rial composing the fruit is at once 

 removed — and Ave can not fail to com- 

 prehend that a great and most unnat- 

 ural disturbance must be the result. 



In the case of young vines, as with 

 young animals, the}' require all the 

 aid possible to ensure their full devel- 

 opment. Do not let them run wild 

 the largo portion of the season, and 

 then destro}' their limbs to bring them 

 into order at the end. The vine, as 

 everything else, must be attended at 

 the right time and in the proper man- 

 ner, or punishment will most surely 

 follow transgression. Of the two 



evils — absurd, ill-considered pruning, 

 and no pruning at all — we take the 

 last as the least." 



PRUNING THE GRAPE VINE. 



" From this time forward to frost 

 the thumb pruning of the grape vine 

 should be abandoned. All the sur- 

 plus wood now made will be removed 

 at the annual knife pruning in Feb- 

 ruary or March. It is a theory, in 

 many places practically illustrated, 

 that we prune our native vines too 

 much. In several instances, gentle- 

 men have written us that they are ex- 

 perimenting with the Concord, Dela- 

 ware and Clinton, in letting the vine 

 make all the growth it will, giving 

 all the room needed, and not pruning 

 at all. There are those who believe 

 that by this method entire health will 

 be secured ; a long and varied series 

 of experiments alone can determine." 



[We clip the above articles, re- 

 lating to the same subject, from 

 Colman's Ttwra^ World. We endorse, 

 upon the whole, the idea given therein. 

 Our readers know that no one can be 

 more averse to the slaughtering j)roces8 

 than we are. But if the writer in con- 

 clusion says, ^'Of the two evils, absurd, 

 ill-considered pruning, or no pruning 

 at all, wo take the last as the least," we 

 are like the Irishman, and " take nei- 

 ther of them." If the grape-grower 

 is not able to work at the proper time, 

 and in the proper manner, our advice 

 to him would be, quit at once ; do 7iot 

 grow grapes, for you do not deserve 

 to have them in perfection. We fol- 

 low the old maxim, " What is worth 

 doing at all, is worth doing right." 

 And we consider it absurd to speak 

 of discontinuing "from this time (20th 

 of Aug.) to frost" the thumb pruning 

 of vines. Had the writer said ''from 

 1st of July on," he w^ould have been 

 nearer right. No thinking grape- 

 grower would or could thumb-prune 

 his vines in August. — Editor.] 



