132 Lessons in Fruit Growing. 



Pnming refers to the removal of parts of the vine. Train- 

 ing refers to the placing upon the trellis of the parts that 

 are left. 



A growing, leafy branch of the grape vine is commonly 

 called a sJioot. A ripened shoot is called a cane. A branch 

 two or more years old is called an arm. A branch of an 

 arm older than a cane is called a spur. 



A shoot normally starts in spring from each bud of last 

 year's wood, and continues to grow throughout the sum- 

 mer. At each leaf of the shoot a bud is normally pro- 

 duced, from which new fruit-beariug shoots may grow the 

 next spring. If all these buds were allowed to remain, the 

 vine would produce the next season more flower clusters 

 than it could properly mature, which would result in a 

 large number of poorly-developed bunches, and a weak- 

 ened vine. The canes are therefore cut back until they 

 bear only as many buds as experience has show^n the vine 

 can properly develop. The number of buds that should be 

 left will depend upon the variety, the age aud vigor of the 

 vine, the character and exposure of the soil, the cultivation 

 given and the method of pruning and training adopted. 

 Experience must be the chief guide. A mature vine of the 

 Concord grape, which is a vigorous and prolific variety, 

 planted 9 or 10 feet from its neighbors, on good soil, with 

 favorable exposure, pruned and trained by any of the ordi- 

 nary systems, will usually develop 30 to 60 clusters weigh- 

 ing one-fourth to half a pound eacli. It follows that 

 such a vine should have from 15 to 30 bearing shoots, and 

 hence should be cut back at the annual pruning to from 15 

 to 30 buds, the number depending on the health and vigor 

 of the vine. All the wood of the previous season's growth 

 is therefore cut away, except sufficient to contain 15 to 30 



