292 



The Grape CuUurist. 



tender hospitality of the State in a 

 quiet retreat like that at Jacksonville; 

 will deny its importance and vast in- 

 fluence on the general welfare of the 

 nation, especially when we take into 

 consideration the many trades and pro- 

 fessions which are directly and indi- 

 rectly furnished employment through 



its means, a fact of such importance 

 that it should never be lost sisht of 

 though a few men maj' need a brick 

 in their pockets to balance the turkey 

 they hold in their hats. 



Dr. Ampelos. 



Golden Hills Vineyard, Nauvoo, Ills. 



PEOPAGATING VINES. 



Manhattan, Riley Co., Kansas. 



Geo. Husmann, Esq.: 



Dear Sir: — While binding volume 

 1 of the Grape Culturist, to-day, I 

 happened to look through it and saw 

 an essay by A. E. Traube, a commu- 

 nication by Samuel Miller, and some 

 of your editorial remarks about pro- 

 pagating grape vines. 



I must confess that I could hardly 

 believe that a man of your sense and 

 intelligence would have penned such 

 an article as appears on page 79, it is 

 so much different from my experience, 

 although undoubtedly it is yours. 

 You compare a layered plant to a 

 child taken from its " mother's breast 

 and feeding it on meat and bread." 

 Notwithstanding, you say " it has 

 drawn a large share of sustenance 

 from " the mother jilant ; while the 

 cutting, you say, has made '' all its 

 growth by its own intrinsic and inde- 

 pendent vigor." 



Now I take it from my own tests, 

 as well as from my 'reason, that the 

 layer has some " independent vigor," 

 besides the great advantage of "suck- 

 ing " its mother until it becomes a full 

 grown man. It is not taken from its 

 " mother's breast " and fed " on meat 

 and bread " until it has arrived at 



manhood's prime, when it Avould be a 

 shame to let it tug a' the teat any lon- 

 ger. The layer not alone draws nour- 

 ishment from the atmosphere through 

 the action of the leaves, as well as 

 food from the soil, but in addition it 

 is fed all it can eat or " suck " from 

 its "mother's breast," while the cut- 

 ting has not this advantage. Why, 

 then, should it not be a better plant 

 by far than a " cutting root "? When 

 I speak of layers, I mean those pi'op- 

 erly propagated, by the mode I pro- 

 pagate all my plants, and which I will 

 presently explain. 



The objection you make against 

 layers because they must be put 

 deeper in the soil than they were in 

 the nursery, is again contrary to my 

 experience, as well as that of others 

 in this neighborhood. I cannot con- 

 sume space in giving many instances, 

 but will give one. Wm. Phillips, of 

 Manhattan, last sj^ring procured 75 

 layered vines from me — 71 of them 

 lived. At the same time he planted 

 50 " cutting roots " of No. 1 from 



nursery, and only five lived. 



The 50 were bought from a dealer of 

 Manhattan. 



My experience as well as my reason 

 teaches me that by layering vines some 



