196 THE GRAPE CtJLTURIST. 



any authentic account, was Mr. Alphonse Loubat, of 

 Brooklyn, N. Y., who, early in the present century, had 

 a vineyard of foreign grapes growing on land now cov- 

 ered with blocks of buildings in the said city. Mr. Lou- 

 bat published a small work in French and English, under 

 the title of the "Vinedressers' Guide," in 1827. Some 

 thirty odd years later an old resident of Brooklyn, who 

 had been a frequent visitor to Loubat's vineyard, in- 

 formed me that paper bags were extensively employed to 

 prevent mildew, and the owner of the vineyard seemed 

 to be very proud of the discovery, that by such simple 

 means very perfect fruit could be secured. 



Gathering the Fruit. Grapes are usually gath- 

 ered long before they are really ripe. Sometimes this is 

 done for the purpose of getting them into market early ; 

 in other cases it may be because they appear to be ripe, 

 when, in fact, the ripening process has only commenced. 

 Nearly all varieties change their color fifteen to twenty 

 days before they are fully matured ; and as the grape is 

 one of those fruits that must ripen before being gath- 

 ered, or not at all, it must be apparent that too much 

 care is not likely to be given upon this point. 



It is natural to be impatient for the harvest, partic- 

 ularly when we have waited so long, and watched with 

 so much care and anxiety for the ripening of our fruit ; 

 still, a little haste may be more fatal than considerable 

 delay ; for grapes that are over-ripe keep much better 

 than those that are not fully ripe. The stem of the 

 bunch will usually turn brown and become somewhat 

 shriveled when the fruit is fully matured. 



Always gather the grapes in fair weather, and wait 

 until the dew has dried off before commencing in the 

 morning. Cut off the clusters with a knife or shears, 

 and handle them with care, so that the bloom shall not 

 be rubbed off nor any of the berries broken. 



If any portion of the crop is not ripe, leave it on the 

 vines and gather it separately, after the best has been 



