2S8 



The Grape Culturist. 



lo hasten its ripening. Wo hope much 

 •in this respect from the air treatment 

 of Mr. R. d'Heureuse. 



It is a mistaken and long exploded 

 })rojudice that the ^' lees are the mother 

 of the wine/' and that, consequently, 

 the wine should remain on them until 

 spring. The lees arc the excrements 

 or impurities contained in the Avine 

 which settle at the bottom during fer- 

 mentation and immediately following 

 it. How wine can, then, be benefited 

 by remaining on these impurities we 

 j-an not see, and wo think we have all 



the authorities on our side. The more 

 complete this purifying process, the 

 riper and better, consequently purer 

 and healthier, must be the wine. An}- 

 remnant of the ferment or lees still 

 suspended in the wine must, necessa- 

 ril}-, be disagreeable to the taste, and 

 injurious to the system. We would 

 therefore advise frequent rackings as 

 one of the best means to ripen and 

 purify the wine. 



We shall return to this subject again 

 in a future number. 



Editor. 



DR. WYLIE'S HYBRID GRAPES. 



"Since the publication in The Rural 

 Carolinian for September of Mr. Kave- 

 nel's letter and our appended remarks 

 on some of Dr. Wylie's grapes, we 

 have received from him specimens of 

 many others ; and, much as we were 

 pleased with those sent us by Mr. 

 llavenel, we were not fully prepared 

 for the pleasure reserved for us. We 

 confess to being astonished, as well as 

 delighted, in view of the results ob- 

 tained ; and cannot find words to ade- 

 quately express our appreciation of the 

 value of Dr. Wylie's labors. 



To describe properly all of Dr. 

 W^ylie's hybrids that we have had the 

 pleasure of tasting, nearly twenty-five 

 in number, would require more time 

 and space than we liave now at com- 

 mand ; besides, we are not (lualified to 

 do it. In tasting and comparing so 

 man}' varieties, we found ourselves 

 losing the power of nice discrimina- 

 tion, and therefore confined ourselves, 

 in our critical examination, to a few. 



Of these, and others which ma}' bo 

 equally good, we hope in future num- 

 ber's to present full accounts, from the 

 pen of Dr. Wylie himself, with illus- 

 trations from nature of some of them. 



Of Janie Wylie (Clynton Hybrid. 

 No. 1), we have already spoken. The 

 specimens since received more than 

 confirm our high opinion of it, and we 

 agree with Mr. Ravenel in placing it at 

 the head of the list, and take pleasure 

 in endorsing the name he has given it. 

 In point of fiavor, merely, it is not the 

 best, though excellent ; I)ut, consider- 

 ing its size, beauty, productiveness and 

 freedom from disease, it is unequalled 

 by any grape witli which we are ac- 

 quainted. 



We are not prepared to say which 

 should come next in order, considered 

 as a grape for general cultivation, but 

 will name Halifax Hybrid, No. 55^ (F. 

 Halifax, M. Delaware). This is truly 

 a magnificent grape. Bunches, medium, 

 long, shouldered ; berries, medium or 



