52 THE CULTURE OF THE GRAPE. 



By the foregoing, it would appear that the plan of covering 

 the border with heating substances, for the purpose of raising 

 the temperature of the border, was suggested and practised 

 before Mr. Roberts's book appeared.* It differs from his 

 plan in not recommending the continuance of this heat by 

 renewing of the fermenting materials, which renewal, in my 

 opinion, is unnecessary. 



Mr. A. Forsyth, in a diary of the culture of the grape, 

 published in Loudon's Magazine, vol. 10, page 548, also gives 

 directions relative to the covering of the border, as follows : — 



" Nov. 25th, 1833. Forked the border about three inches 

 deep ; laid on turfy loam and old lime mortar about two inches 

 deep ; then old hotbed dung, well rotted, two inches deep ; 

 the roots being near the surface, having been planted as shal- 

 low as possible. 27th. Laid leaves on the vine border one 

 foot thick, and fresh hot dung one foot : protected the above 

 from rains, &c., by reed covers, used at other times for pine 

 pits. Dec. 1st. Fire heat applied. Jan. 5th, 1834. Heat 

 of dung on the border, 96°. 19th. Heat of dung on the 

 border, 65°. Feb. 1st. Dung on the border nearly cold. 

 March 12th. Dung, leaves, &c. cleared off the border to ad- 

 mit sun heat, &c. ; the border was forked over. April 12th. 

 First berry of the Hamburgh beginning to change color ; bor- 

 der watered with dung water, (dry weather.) May 10th. 

 Grrapes exhibited at the gardens of the London Horticultural 

 Society, for which the large gold medal was awarded, the 

 berries measurmg three and a half and four inches round." 



I cannot agree with Mr. Hutchinson in the propriety of his 

 giving fixed hours for opening and closing the lights for the 

 purpose of giving air. These directions may be good for a 

 certain house, and very unsuitable for another. They may 

 be, and probably were, intended as apphcable to a house -^vdth 

 a front due south. Now, if the front should be to the south- 

 east, the house thus situated would be exposed to a very great 

 heat one or two hours before the time specified, and, in the 



* See Mr. Roberts's plan for heating the border, and remarks relative thereto. 



