48 Pruning. 



BUSHBERG CATALOGUE. 



Girdling. 



during the summer is an unmitigated evil. 

 Campbell says: "All the summer pruning 

 I would recommend, would be the early rub- 

 bing out of superfluous shoots, upon their 

 first appearance; leaving only what is re- 

 quired for next year's bearing wood. This, 

 with the pinching or stopping the ends of 

 such shoots or canes as were disposed to be 

 too rampant in growth, would be all I would 

 ever consider necessar3\ Some of the most 

 successful grape-growers within nij^ knowl- 

 edge carefully prune their vines in fall or 

 early spring, and then leave them entirely 

 without summer pruning." 



We are glad to see that the old practice of 

 cutting and slashing the young growth in 

 July and August is generally discountenanced. 

 It "has murdered more promising vineyards 

 than any other practice. But people are apt 

 to run to extremes, and manj^ are now advo- 

 cating the "let alone" doctrine. We think 

 both are wrong, and that the true course to 

 steer is in the middle. 



1. Perform the operation early. Do it as 

 soon as the shoots are six inches long. At 

 this time you can oversee your vine much 

 easier. Every young shoot is soft and pliable. 

 Remember that the knife should have nothing 

 to do with summer pruning. Your thumb 

 and finger should perform all the work, and 

 the}' can do it easily if it is done early. 



2. Perform it tJiorotighly and systemat- 

 ically. Select the shoots you intend for 

 bearing wood for next j-ear. These are left 

 unchecked ; but do not leave more than you 

 really need. Having selected these, go over 

 each arm or part of the vine, pinching every 

 fruit-bearing branch above the last bunch of 

 grapes, or, if this should look weak or imper- 

 fect, remove it and pinch back to the first 

 perfectly developed bunch. Should the bud 

 have pushed out two or three* shoots, it will 

 generally be ad\asab]e to leave only the 

 strongest, and remove the balance. Do not 

 think that you can do part of it a little later, 

 but be unsparing in taking away all you in- 

 tend to take this time. Destroy all the cater- 

 pillars and all the insects you find feeding on 

 the vines, and the steel-blue beetle, as it will 

 eat into the buds. But protect the ladv-bug, 

 mantis, and all the friends of the vine. 



After the first pinching, the dormant buds 

 in the axils of the leaves, on fruit-bearing 

 shoots, will each push out a lateral shoot op- 

 posite the young bunches. These serve as 

 elevators of the sap, and also as an excellent 

 protection and shade to the fruit. Remem- 

 ber, our aim is not to rob the plant of its 

 foliage, but to make tioo leaves grow where 

 there was but one before, and at a place 

 where they are of more benefit to the fruit. 



By our method, our rows of vines have the 

 appearance of leafy walls, each bunch of the 

 fruit properl}' shaded, and yet each part of 

 the vine is properly ventilated. 



As we have said before (page 44), that it 

 would be impossible and confusing only to 

 describe the many various systems of grape 

 training ; so it would be useless to construct 

 rules for their pruning. If we understand 

 the philosophy and objects of both thor- 

 oughly", their methods will be easily learned 

 and understood on the vine by a little prac- 

 tice. Pruning refers to the removal of such 

 branches as shall insure upon the remaining 

 portion of the vine better and larger fruit. 

 Training refers to the form, the disposition 

 of the different parts of the vine. There is, 

 in essence, but one method of jnuning, while 

 there are as many methods of training as 

 there are fancies among grape-growers, which 

 necessarily modify the style of pruning, so as 

 to adapt it to the shape desired, but does not 

 affect the principles upon which pruning 

 rests ; being based upon the fact that the fruit 

 of the grape-vine is borne (in a few clusters 

 near the base of the shoots of the season) on 

 icood of last year's groivth. 



And the objects we must ever keep in view 

 are: 



1. To keep the vine within proper man- 

 ageable bounds, so that it is at all times under 

 the control of the "sintner, irithout iceakening 

 its constitution by robbing it of a great amount 

 of foliage. 



2. To facilitate cultivation and spraying. 



3. Judicious thinning of the fruit and de- 

 veloping strong, healthy foliage, forcing the 

 growth of the laterals, and having two j'oung, 

 healthy leaves opposite each remaining bunch, 

 which will shade the fruit and serve as con- 

 ductors of the sap to the fruit. 



4. Groiving vigorous canes for next year's 

 fruiting and no more, thereby making them 

 stronger. 



5. To produce larger and better fruit, now 

 and in the future. 



An old French method : Girdling the 

 Grape-vin"e, to obtain the last named object, 

 that of producing some extra fine, large clus- 

 ters, often successfully practiced by garden- 

 ers, should here be mentioned. 



Girdling consists in removing a ring of 

 bark, about half an inch in width, below the 

 lowest fruit bud, using as a tool the small 

 blade of a jack-knife. By this removal of 

 the bark the downward flow of the sap is 

 checked at the point of bark-denuded wood. 

 Instead of removing the bark two copper 

 wires may be fastened on the cane with the 

 same effect, which is : to increase the size 

 and earliness of the fruit so treated. This 



