THE GENESEE FARMER. 



123 



THE CULTIVATION OF THE GEAPE VINE. 



"VTe give aa engraving of the modern method of 

 training grape vines which we take from the Jour- 

 nal d^ Agriculture Partique. There has been in 

 that periodical a long and quite acrimonious discus- 

 cussion as to who first praticed this method on the 

 continent. Mr. Hooebbenk, an Austrian, and 

 Dr. Jules Guyot, both claim the discorerj. M. 

 GuTOT acknowledged, however, that there is but 

 little that is new in the method of culture. He 

 says that it is only an improvement on old customs. 

 It is very much like the " renewal system," which 

 has been practiced very successfully in this country 



The mode of culture can be easily understood by 

 referring to the engraving. The fruit bearing canes 

 are trained horizontally, and from them short 

 shoots, on which are the fruit buds, are trained ver- 

 tically. Each shoot is allowed to bear two bunches 

 of grapes and is pinched off two leaves above the 

 second bunch. A tall "cschalas," or prop is 

 placed to support the cane which will the next 

 jrear replace the fruit bearing branch. It will be 

 seen from the engraving that the two canes which 

 are called " wood canes," to distinguish them from 

 ihe " fruit canes," have each borne a few bunches 

 )f grapes. This is not a fancy sketch, but is taken 

 Tom a photograph of a vine in the vineyard of M. 



e Comte de Laistbk, chateau Mornay, near Vienna. 



• ^ I ^ 



RAISDTQ TOMATO PLANTS. 



A correspondent of the Genesee Farmer gave a 

 )lan of raising early tomatoes in the house, which 

 I friend informs us he has tried with excellent re- 

 nlts. It is simply to take some turnips, hollow 

 ►ut the inside, and fill them with fine soil. Two or 

 hree seeds are sown in each turnip, so as to secure 

 me good plant in each. The rest must be pulled 

 lut. He ususlly puts the turnips in a box and fills 

 he interstices with soil to keep them steady and 

 Qoist. He keeps the box in his kitchen. Of course 

 he plants should have all the light you can give 

 hem, and should not be too near a stove. The 

 :reat difiieulty in growing plants in a room is that 

 he atmosphere is too dry. The leaves should be 

 epeatedly sprinkled with water, and the soil kept 

 Qoist, but not too wet. 



When the plants have attained a good size, and the 

 reather becomes milder, they should be placed out 

 if doors on warm days, and otherwise " hardened 

 iff " before setting out in the ground. 



The plants, turnips and all, are set out in the 

 :round wit|out disturbing the roots. The shell of 

 he turnip soon decays and the tomato grows 

 ' right along." 



WHAT SHALL BE DONE WITH OLD OKCHARDS T 



In many sections of the country there are a 

 great many apple orchards, that are not only com- 

 paratively unproductive, but the little fruit they 

 bear is almost worthless. It is a mooted question 

 whether it is better to cut down these old trees 

 and plant new ones, or endeavor to renovate the 

 old orchard by cultivating and manuring the land, 

 and by grafting the trees with desirable varieties. 

 That the last practice is frequently successful can- 

 not be denied, but those who have had most expe- 

 rience seem to think that, all things considered, it 

 is better to plant out new trees. The cost of such 

 trees is comparatively little, and it is far easier to 

 prepare the land properly for a new orchard than 

 to renovate an old one. Of course it would be 

 v/^ell to let the old orchards remain till the new 

 one comes into bearing. 



In the last number of the Country Gentlemari, 

 M. S. EJKLLOGG, of Chicopee, Massachusetts, relates 

 his experience in grafting an old orchard, and in 

 planting a new one. The result was decidedly in 

 favor of the latter course. He says : 



"When I purchased my present farm, fifteen 

 years ago, it had on it an old orchard. The trees 

 were natural fruit, but many of them looked quite 

 thrifty. I commenced to trim, scrape and graft, 

 I paid out about thirty dollars, beside what labor I 

 did myself. The ground was plowed lightly and 

 manured, sown with turnips, and sometimes planted 

 with potatoes or sowed with corn for fodder. I 

 waited eight years expecting fruit in abundance, 

 but I waited in vain. Some of the grnffs srrew 

 well for a while, but I soon found more or ic»s of 

 the trees were dying, evidently from the effect of 

 trimming and grafting. Many of the grafts died, 

 (trees and all,) after being set a number of years. 

 It is my opinion that I have not had more than fif- 

 teen bushels of grafted fruit from all of those trees 

 since the grafts were set. The trees and parts of 

 trees not grafted, produced well, perhaps every 

 other year, but few of the apples are worth much 

 except to feed stock. 



" Six years ago last spring I set out one hundred 

 apple trees bought at the nursery. The trees were 

 set thirty-three feet apart. Since the trees were 

 set I have manured the land and raised a good crop 

 every year. The crops usually raised among the 

 trees are carrots, cabbage, corn sometimes, and 

 corn fodder. The same crop is not on the same 

 ground two years in succession. These trees have 

 grown well, and look smooth and thrifty, and oth- 

 ers say just right. They are now from ten to sev- 

 enteen inches in circumference two feet from the 

 ground. A few of the trees bore specimen apples 

 the second year, and have produced more and 

 more each year since. The past year, 1862, the 

 produce of the first one hundred trees set, was 

 one hundred bushels of nice apples. Some kinds, 

 which come late into bearing, have not produced 

 much yet. The Northern Spy and Early Straw- 

 berry, for instance, are of this class. Some Bald- 



