Notes and Gleanings. 297 



The second annual meeting of the New-York State Grape-Growers' Associa- 

 tion was held at Canandaigua, Feb. 18. The following officers were chosen : 

 President, Hon. E. B. Pottle, Naples ; Vice-Presidents, C. L. Hoag, Lockport ; 

 C. D. Champlain, Hammondsport ; Dr. H. H. Farley, Union Springs ; A. S. Moss, 

 Fredonia ; Dr. C. \V. Grant, Peekskill ; Corresponding Secretary, G. F. Wilcox, 

 Fairport ; Recording Secretary. E. F. Underhill, Brocton ; Treasurer, M. D. 

 Munger, Canandaigua. Hon. Marshall P. Wilder of Boston, and Dr. John A. 

 Warder of Cincinnati, were elected honorary members of the association. 



The president, in his address, said, " There are localities in nearly every sec- 

 tion of the State, even in the extreme north, sheltered nooks, having the proper 

 adaptation of soil and other influence, which have made the growing of this de- 

 licious fruit not only profitable in the ordinary sense, but exceedingly so when 

 compared with the results of growing the other products of our State. In all 

 such localities, the cultivation of the grape should be ' encouraged. Not only 

 should we seek out such localities, but it should be our duty to learn the variety 

 best adapted to them ; for we know full well that a grape which thrives well in 

 one place or section may be and often is worthless in another. The Delaware 

 may be set down as one of the best American grapes ; but when planted in a 

 soil adapted to the successful culture of the Catawba, Isabella, or Diana, it was 

 worthless : and the latter, when taken from the sterile soil that develops and 

 makes them what they are in certain localities within our State, and transplanted 

 to the rich soil needed for the Delaware, exhaust themselves in needless growth 

 of wood ; and the fruit gathered, rarely, if ever, repays the cost of culture. And 

 it will be quite as impossible for us to establish a standard for pruning, for plant- 

 ing, for cultivation, or any thing in regard to the grape, which shall be universal 

 in its application, as it is to establish a standard of variety. All these matters 

 have got to be considered with reference to the strength of your soil ; and when 

 you have brought sagacity and experience to bear upon the question of culture, 

 and ascertained what your wants are, you can adapt yourself to it." 



Mr. Coxe of Auburn spoke in favor of Allen's Hybrid. In his experience, 

 the way to make the Allen's Hybrid produce was to starve the vine. With gen- 

 erous culture, the fruit was poor and the foliage mildewed ; but when planted in 

 very poor stony land, overlying limestone rock, the third year it grew vigorously, 

 and rewarded him with eight pounds of fine fruit, without a mildewed leaf or an 

 impaired berry. He had applied sulphur twice during the season. Some other 

 vines had succeeded as well by applying common gypsum. 



Mr. Keech of Waterloo, having been unsuccessful with the Allen's Hybrid, 

 thought the difficulty might be in the mode of pruning, and commenced experi- 

 menting on three vines. He formed two horizontal arms to a vine, each four feet 

 long, and cut all the canes down to within three inches of the arm. All the 

 buds which started he allowed to remain, and they grew to the top of the trellis. 

 He did no summer pruning, but let each shoot grow as far as it would. After he 

 had picked several clusters, he gathered the fruit from one of the vines, and they 

 weighed thirteen pounds of very handsome fruit. The next year, he took off 

 twenty-two pounds of as handsome fruit as he had ever seen. The vines were 



VOL. V. 38 



