CULTUKAL CABE. 139 



of two branches, one bearing a hook against which the cane 

 presses, the other a sharpjblade which cuts it. In well-made 

 secateurs the blade and the hook are disposed in such a 

 manner that when they press against the cane the blade does 

 not press normally, but, on the contrary, forms a certain angle 

 with the hook, causing a kind of sawing rather than crushing. 

 The two handles are long, and may be used with both hands ; 

 one of them is straight, and ended by a cold chisel used to 

 remove suckers. 



Primers must always be careful to keep the hook above, 

 so that the part of the cane which bears against it, and is 

 always more or less bruised, will be pruned off. 



2ND. DIGGING. 



Digging should be done so as to form a basin round the 

 vine (Herault) or small trenches perpendicular to the line 

 of vines (parts of Bouches-du-Rhone), or in trenches along 

 the rows. In the first case the work is done by hand ; in 

 the Languedoc's the basins are made 6 to 8 inches deep, 

 they are wide enough to touch each other. This is con- 

 sidered equivalent to cultivating half the surface ; in the 

 second case, the digging is done at the same time as the first 

 ploughing, and may be done by hand (Fig. 121) or with 



Fig. 121. Arrangement of soil after digging. 



ploughs. In this case special ploughs are used (see Figs. 92 

 to 95), and a small ridge left between the vines is dug away 

 by hand. Digging should be done in winter, when heavy 

 frosts are not to be feared any longer, to avoid freezing the 

 trunk. However, it is important not to wait too long, for 

 the efficacy of this operation depends greatly on the length 

 of time the collar of the plant is left exposed to the air. 



The object of digging is to completely cultivate round the 

 vine, to destroy weeds which the plough cannot reach, and 

 kill the larvae or eggs of insects found under the old bark 

 near the collar of the plant. It also helps 'to destroy suckers 

 or superficial roots, which, in the case of grafts especially, 

 may cause different accidents. It is also often used to bury 

 manures or fertilizers in countries where the custom is to 

 put them round the stumps. 



