548 



THE GEiS'ESEE FARMER. 



objection to the Isabella for wine, is that in the manufac- 

 ture of Isiibelhi wine we must udd sugar. Mr. Long- 

 worth, of Ciiiciouati, whose name is so allied with the 

 celebrated Catawba wiue, had said to hmi that a sample 

 of wine from the Delaware grape was the best wine he 

 ever made ; possessed more body, was a heavier wine, 

 and a better wme than any other that he had. From his 

 experience with Delaware, Mr. L. liked it very well so 

 far. About Cincinnati, the Delaware vine does not re- 

 quire manuring highly; but it requires deep culture of 

 tl:ie soil — such culture as would produce good crops of 

 corn. The reason for deep culture is, that if the land be 

 with a chiyey subsoil underlaid with limestone, and the 

 clay compact, the roots cannot penetrate it, and the sub- 

 soil needs working up. 



Jlr. Hooker confirmed what Mr. Ellwangee had stated 

 as to deep culture; tlv in Monroe county, high manuring 

 is not necessary to the successful growth of grapes. Too 

 much manuring is done — too much stimulus applied. 



Mr. Barry spoke of cultivators as all being too anxious 

 to get fruit immediately, and to have it ripen up all at 

 once. The ground for planting the vine should in all 

 cases be thoroughly prepared, and deep working is one 

 of the requisites. To be sure, the roots may go down 

 into the cold subsoil, but we are not working for one year 

 merely, but for a whole generation. People are too impa- 

 tient for fruit from their plantings ; they grumble be- 

 cause their pear trees do not fruit sooner after setting 

 out ; and the Northern Spy apple, which is now so popu- 

 lar and highly esteemed, used to be blamed for its late 

 bearing. In planting the vine, they use in Europe at 

 first no manure; they trench and plant the vines, and 

 afterward manure upon the surface of the ground. For 

 a permanent vineyard, the soil should be .subsoiled at 

 least twenty inches deep ; and although twice worked, 

 you do not throw the subsoil on top of the other soil ne- 

 cessarily, but depending a good deal on the character of 

 the subsoil. If the laud be worked, deep, the roots of the 

 vines are not so liable to be killed by the winters. From 

 the experience which fruit-growers have had during the 

 twelve months past, we are more positive in regard to 

 the qualities of grapes than we were a year ago. 



Mr. Maxwrll, of Ontario county, spoke of Allen's Hy- 

 brid grape, a variety from Salem, Mass., which in a pri- 

 vate garden at Geneva has done very well and promises 

 well. The fruit is white like Rebecca, but the bunches 

 are larger, the leaves larger, and the growth of the vine 

 strpuger. 



Mr. HoAG spoke here of the Logan, a very early black 

 grape, and said he should consider it a very good grape. 



Several members called upon Mr. Bissell to state as to 

 the Logan, and he remarked that untoward circumstances 

 had prevented his fruiting the Logan this year; but that 

 a quantity of the fruit was sent to him from Jlr. Thosison 

 on the :20th August, and all who ate it liked it very much. 

 Mr. Ellwanger rose and remarked that when at Phila- 

 delphia latel}', he had made inquiries of gentlemen from 

 the west, and they did not express a very favorable opin- 

 ion of it. 



Mr. lioAG spoke of the To Kalon, which be would pro- 

 nounce a better grape than the Isabella, especially for 

 family use, for cultivation in gardens, <tc. 



In this Mr. Hooker joined, pronouncing the To Kalon 

 a grape of fine quality, with flavor delicious, and in size 

 larger than the Isabella. It is earlier than Isabella, and 

 is like the Diana a very vigorous grower, with broad fine 

 foliage, and the fruit when fine is very fine; but it has 

 defects for general cultivation, being subject to mildew 

 and imperfect bunches. Mr. II. also spok^ of the Union 

 Village, as a variety which from observation he should 

 judge to have a flavor as good as the Isabella, while its 

 berries being so large and showy, made it worthy of trial. 

 This Union Village grape creates quite a sensation at the 

 east on account of its size. 



Mr. Ellwanger spoke of the Union Village from his 

 own experience, having fruited it for the last two years ; 

 and in flavor it is fully as good as the Isabella, while the 

 vine is perfectly hardy, and surely is among the varieties 

 which are promising well. 



D. W. Beadle, of Canada, spoke of the Ontario grape, 

 which was a fine showy grape in appearance, somewhat 

 like what the Isabella would be with the berries much 

 lai-ger and the quality not quite as good. 



Col. Hodge here remarked that the Ontario bad been 



twice shown at the exhibitions of the Buffalo Horticultu- 

 ral Society; noticed it especially a year ago, with its 

 clusters enormously large, berries fully an inch in diame- 

 ter, and the fruit was belter than I anticipated. On the 

 whole, thought the Ontario a passable grape. 



Discussion h.ere became very desultory, and consisted 

 very much of questions and answers. 



Mr. Craine said, in answer to a question l)y Mr. Baker, 

 that in some seasons the Catawba can be ripened well here, 

 but not generally. Would doubt their actually i-ipeniiig 

 this year. He ripens the fruit of the Isabella vine two 

 weeks earlier than usual by girdling, and the berries are 

 from one-half to two-thirds larger; but it was at the ex- 

 pense of the flavor of the fruit, which was not near so 

 good when it was stronger, and was not so palatable. 



Mr. Barry stated that Catawba don't ripen generally in 

 this locality, but south in Steuben county, near Crooked 

 Lake, knew of a hundred acres of very steep hill-side, 

 well sheltered and facing the south. It was a nice gravul- 

 ly loam, deep soil, etc., being an exceedingly warm s]]iit. 

 While in the open country tTiey could not ripen the Isa- 

 bella even, they had formed a company now for buying 

 all the grapes produced as above, and converting theiu 

 into wine. This spot in Steuben county is just the jilace 

 for a vineyard; there is not another in Western New 

 York so favorable; j'et the Catawba can not be relied on 

 here. 



Mr. Baker : Good wine can be made in Western New 

 York. Use grapes of a different (ri]ier) ([uality than for 

 the table. Concord is at the head of the list; Diana is 

 unquestionable, and is a fine, splendid grape. 



Mr. Hooker spoke of a good many new grapes, yet 

 mainly confirmed what Mr. Baker had said, and praised 

 Diana, Delaware, and Concord, as about all that anything 

 favorable has been said for. 



On motion of E. Moody, seconded by Geo. Ellwanger, 

 adjourned. 



ABOUT TREES AND COUNTRY LIFE1 



TiiEKE is not a per.'-^on, we believe, within reach 

 of the Genesee Fanner who does not know the [yrice 

 of a cord of wood ; — not a fanner w!io cannot give 

 a shrewd guess how mucli money sundry old oaks 

 or chestnuts will bring at the saw mill! Very 

 many there are perhaps, who generalizing in a large, 

 loose way, have thought of the influence which 

 trees in the hulk or in the large forests have upon 

 tlie climate and physical well-being of a country ; 

 as for instance how they hold the springs in solu- 

 tion as it were, so that they may not dry hack too 

 quickly into clouds, but tarry to nourish the earth. 

 We all know, too, how much more liable a cleared 

 country is to sudden freshets. 



In short we have no doubt but that all interested 

 can calculate the value of our timber in dollars and 

 cents. They know, and are gratified in knowing, 

 to how many and manifold uses our noble forest 

 trees can be applied ; — to uses of food and shelter, 

 to uses of labor; to uses of adornment even, con- 

 sidered with reference to something else, — but as 

 things of heauty considered by themselves, — as 

 subjects of admiration and appreciation, each one 

 as an individual and as a member of a beautiful 

 class, how few persons whose lives and very for- 

 tunes are cast among them, regard the fellow ia 

 habitants of earth in any such light. 



