VIN 



VIN 



VERTIGO. Giddiness. 



VESICANTS. Substances which 

 produce blistering. 



VESICLE. A small bladder. 



VESPID.iC. The fiunilv of wasps. 



VESTIBL'LE. A porch or ante- 

 room. 



VETCH. The genus Fia'a, 'sev- 

 eral of which bear pretty leguminous 

 flowers. The V. sativa is the com- 

 mon tare. 



VETCIILIXG. The genus Lalhy- 

 riis, leguminous plants, frequently of 

 great beauty, as the L. latifolius, or 

 sweet pea. 



VEXILLU.M. The standard : the 

 upper petalof a papilionaceous or pea- 

 like flower. 



VIBRISSA. The pointed bristles 

 which grow from the upper lip of an- 

 imals, or from the jaws of birds, and 

 are used as feelers. 



VILLOSE. Woolly, covered with 

 soft, flexible hairs closely set. 



VILLOUS. Having the appear- 

 ance of the pile of velvet. 



VINE. Viiis vinifera, the Syrian 

 vine, from which the numerous Eu- 

 ropean varieties are produced ; but 

 in the United States there are indi- 

 genous the V. labrusca, or fox grape, 

 of which the Isabella, Catawba, and 

 Alexander grapes are supposed to 

 be hybrids ; the V. crs/ivalis, or little 

 summer grape ; V. riparia, the odorif- 

 erous grape. In the South there are 

 also the bullet grape, V. rotundifolia, 

 and the V. palmala. 



Varieties. — The kinds of vines 

 more or less cultivated in the United 

 States are very numerous, and are 

 divisible into two classes, foreign and 

 domestic grapes. 



Of the foreign kinds, most are cul- 

 tivated for the table, and, according 

 to the evidence of many speculators 

 in the Nortb, cannot be profitably cul- 

 tivated north of Maryland except un- 

 der glass, every effort to acclimate 

 them in vineyards having failed, and 

 few vines succeeding except in warm, 

 sheltered spots, or in cities. These 

 kinds are, however, of such remark- 

 able excellence, and so superior to 

 the native varieties, that they are ob- 

 tained wherever the means of culti- 



vation exist. The best are the hlack 

 Hamburgh, black Muscadine, Miller's 

 Burgundy, black, grizzly, and white 

 Frontignan, royal .Muscadine {Chas- 

 selas), early white Muscadine, white 

 Sweetwater {ivhite Chassr.lax), Muscat 

 of Alexandria, white and red .Malaga, 

 white St. Peter, and white Tokay. 

 Of these, the sweetwater is acclima- 

 ted in Virginia and South, and the 

 black Hamburgh will stand the open 

 air in Pennsylvania. 



Of the American grapes, the Alex- 

 ander (Vevay, .Madeira of York), the 

 Catawba, Cunningham, Elsinburgh, 

 Norton's Virginia, black Scuppernong, 

 and Warren's Madeira, are best : 

 most of them are, however, southern, 

 the Isabella, Catawba, Alexander, and 

 Elsinburgh growing north of Penn- 

 sylvania. Of these, the Scuppernong 

 is used for wine in North Carolina. 

 The Catawba and Cunningham also 

 yield good wine in Virginia ; the Alex- 

 ander (or Vevay) and Warren's Ma- 

 deira are cultivated in Pennsylvania 

 and Ohio for wine. Several seedlings 

 are also of good repute from Ohio ; 

 but, on the whole, the Scuppernong 

 and Catawba appear to be in the high- 

 est esteem of all native grapes for 

 wine. 



Training-. — The favourite method 

 of training vines which require no 

 wall is along espaliers ; but in North 

 Carolina they are carried over flat 

 arbours, rising eight to twelve feet 

 above the ground. The short bush 

 method of pruning, by which the plant 

 is stunted to a small bush of three or 

 four feet, is common in some parts 

 of France. In Italy they are allowed 

 to grow over mulberry trees. Mr. 

 Hoare's treatise is the text-book 

 of the vine cultivator ; we therefore 

 abstract the following, which is the 

 plan pursued by the principal dress- 

 ers in New-York and Penii.sylvania : 



" Aspect. — The warmer the aspect, 

 the greater perfection does the grape 

 attain in the North, provided all oth- 

 er circumstances are alike ; and if 

 the greatest quantity of the sun's 

 rays shining on the surface of a wall 

 were alone to he considered as con- 

 stituting the best aspect, there would, 



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