SOIL AND SITUATION. 89 



first trench is filled up in making the second, so that the 

 trenches are actually joined together side by side, and 

 the vines in the two rows need not be more than a foot 

 apart. The entire vine may be covered, if desirable, to 

 protect the top from being injured by cold (the dotted 

 line over both trenches, in Fig. 29, shows the form of 

 the embankment when the whole top is covered), or the 

 vines may be cut back before they are heeled-in ; but in 

 either case, if the whole vine is covered, it is best not to 

 do it too early in the fall, nor let the earth remain on 

 too long in the spring. It is also best to assort the vines 

 before cutting off the tops, because we can better judge 

 of the condition of the roots by the appearance of the 

 tops than we can after they are removed. The roots 

 may be abundant and large, yet if they are not well 

 ripened they are of but little value, and it is not always 

 an easy matter to determine their condition when coated 

 with soil, as they usually are when first taken from the 

 ground. 



CHAPTER XI. 



SOIL AND SITUATION. 



When we take into consideration the wide extent of 

 territory in which the grape is found growing, either in 

 its wild or cultivated state, on both the Eastern and 

 Western continents, we may well ponder over the oft- 

 repeated assertion, that the vine does not succeed over 

 the whole extent of any country, but only in certain cir- 

 cumscribed localities ; and while we may admit its truth, 

 we fail to comprehend the reasons why certain soils or 

 sections of a country should be more congenial to the 

 vine than others. Yet the fact that success does attend 

 its cultivation in particular locations, while it entirely 



