Manures and Chemical Applications. 239 



each of them must be laid bare by means of hand labor, 

 and this is a tedious and expensive work. Moreover, 

 in order that the manures may exert all their power on 

 the development of the plants, they must be placed 

 within reach of the ends of the rootlets, which alone 

 possess the power of absorption. Now, the roots of 

 the vine being very long, and not branching out, the 

 manures ought to be placed at a certain distance from 

 the plants, and not at their foot. The process we have 

 just described is, therefore, faulty. It tends, moreover, 

 to the development of a great number of rootlets at 

 the stems of the plants, and these are hurtful to the 

 action of the principal roots, and are, besides, mangled, 

 either by the action of tools, in working the soil, or 

 damaged by drought. Nevertheless, it is difficult to 

 employ any other method for vines planted in an irreg- 

 ular manner. 



For vines planted in reg- 

 ular rows it will, therefore, 

 be a great advantage to 

 place the manure along the 

 middle of the space, at a 

 mean depth of six inches, 

 in the North, and ten inch- 

 es in the South. This opera- 

 tion should be performed, 

 if possible, toward the end 

 of the autumn ; this ma- 

 nure will decompose dur- [FiG. 95.] " Hiller" 

 ing winter, and will fur- adapted to Messager Plow. 

 nish the roots with their nutritive elements, at the awak- 

 ening of vegetation. 



