294 SOME SPECIFIC ADVICE 



put on the market. The practice grew annually, until now 

 a large proportion of the vineyardists of the region girdle 

 more or less vines. A prejudice against the practice ex- 

 isted in the minds of many who had never experimented 

 in this line, and it was charged that the fruit of vines 

 thus treated was only fit to sell, that the method was de- 

 structive to the permanent value of the vines, and was 

 fraudulent and ruinous. 



"That some varieties of grapes, when girdled, produce 

 much larger fruit more than a week earlier, without ma- 

 terially impairing its quality, is a fairly well-established fact. 

 About two or three years ago one of the state experiment 

 stations is said to have reported [see previous pages] that 

 girdling increased the amount of sugar in the fruit, improved 

 its quality, increased its size, and hastened its ripening. 

 This statement encouraged the practice. 



" That girdling destroys the flavor of some varieties has 

 been well shown ; that others when girdled never seem to 

 ripen, or in other words remain sour, is also true. 'A 

 girdled Catawba rivals a cucumber- pickle for acidity, and a 

 Delaware so treated never gets sweet.' Empire State 

 loses all character when girdled, while Martha and Wyom- 

 ing Red suffer no loss in quality. Concord and Champion 

 are girdled freely without bad effects. Worden and Lady 

 sometimes crack badly when girdled ; both are very thin- 

 skinned varieties. As a general rule, the more delicate - 

 flavored grapes, especially if they contain foreign blood, 

 deteriorate most by girdling. 



" The operation is a severe tax on the vine, particularly in 

 a dry season. Therefore, over-bearing must not be al- 

 lowed. When a vine too heavily loaded is girdled, it will 

 stop growing at about the time for the fruit to begin to color, 

 and the fruit will not ripen. It is the opinion of a careful 

 observer, who has practiced girdling the last five seasons, 

 that 25 per cent less fruit should be left on a girdled arm 

 than on the same arm if left ungirdled. Some vineyardists 



