Notes and Gleanings. 303 



It is now established beyond doubt, as Mr. Huntington of Kelly's Island has 

 conclusively shown in a late essay upon " The Climatology of Northern Oliio on 

 the Grape-Crop," that there is pecuniary gain to the producer from allowing 

 grapes to hang on the vines as late as possible, provided the price is regulated 

 by the weight of must. It was found this season that the grapes pressed after 

 the 15th of November had gained fully ten per cent in weight of must over the 

 lots pressed before the 20th of October. The loss in gross weight was consid- 

 erable, but more than counterbalanced by the increase of price, which the Kelly's- 

 island Wine Company have for the past two years graduated by the quality of 

 must. Thus they assumed this vintage eighty-five degrees as the normal 

 standard ; and, for every degree above, a mill was added to the rate per pound, 

 and a like decrease for every degree below, down to a certain limit. 



It is intimated above that the rot was chiefly confined to the Catawba ; and 

 mildew, or blight of leaf, to that variety and the Isabella. It is true that other 

 varieties with us were quite free from these ills. The Hartford, faithful harbin- 

 ger of the coming plenty, gave us a hundred-fold ; and the berries did not drop 

 from the bunches suffered to remain late on the vines. The Concord showed 

 few defective clusters, and the berries did not crack. The must reached eighty 

 degrees, and the grapes ruled high in the market. The Delaware, fairest among 

 the daughters of Pomona, bore its heavy burden cheerfully. Its fruit carried 

 perfectly to distant market, and yielded the handsomest returns. In some in- 

 stances, the must weighed a hundred and eleven degrees ; and a sample of wine 

 from Messrs. Lungren and Rotent, Put-in Bay, tested in committee at the late 

 grape-meeting at Cleveland, was marked a round hundred by every member. 

 The " Sunshine " of Italy, which Hawthorne celebrates in " The Marble Faun," 

 cannot be more nectarous and divine. The Delaware is said to love a very rich 

 soil ; but here our observation teaches us that it does equally well on the clay 

 and loam when well under-drained. 



There was no rot among the Rogers's Hybrids ; but on Kelly's Island we 

 saw mildew on the leaves and fruit of No. i, and slight traces upon No. 15. 

 No. 3 was early and pleasant ; but the bunches were lean, and not numerous. 

 Nos. 4 and 19 were most promising. Both were productive, — 4 the earlier and 

 more showy, 19 superior in quality. Fruit-growers have not awakened to the 

 feal value of these two numbers. 



The Diana, whose moods no man can number, ripened her clusters evenly ; 

 and was intensely sweet, if not palatable to every taste. 



Of the hundreds of vines of lona planted, three and four years since, imme- 

 diately upon the Bay and Lake Shore in this vicinity, no fruit was to be seen. 

 An exception or two would not disprove the general statement. At Put-in Bay, 

 fifty vines of Ives's Seedling in the third year, on the grounds of Sibley and 

 Homer, perfected a fine crop, which was converted into a wine that pleases every- 

 body, by Mr. Harms, the well-known vintner. The must-scale registered eighty- 

 six degrees in this pressing. 



The Norton Virginia increases in favor. With pruning such as recofnrrrend- 

 ed in Husmann's " Grapes and Wine," it bears plentifully of juices rich i* 

 sugar, spice, and tonic- Missouri proclaims her honors in the production of 



