under Glass, without Fire Heat. 87 



volume, to comply with the request of such of our readers 

 as are in want of information upon the subject ; and as the 

 season is now rapidly approaching, when operations must 

 commence, we shall prevail upon some of our practical or 

 amateur correspondents, to give us a diary of the tempera- 

 ture during the season of the growth of the vine, and such 

 other information added, as will tend to render the article 

 a safe guide to those who are unacquainted with the culti- 

 vation of the grape vine under glass. 



A great quantity of grapes are cultivated under glass, both 

 with, and without fire-heat, in the vicinity of Boston, for the 

 supply of the market ; probably to more extent than all the 

 other forced grapes throughout the country. There are but 

 few cultivators around New York, and it is but recently that 

 the growth of the grape in houses has been commenced in 

 the vicinity of Philadelphia ; and the production of grapes in 

 the latter places is confined mostly to gentlemen of wealth, 

 rather than to gardeners for the purpose of supplying the 

 market. But notwithstanding the grape has so long re- 

 ceived attention, and such quantities are annually raised, 

 we regret to say, that they are not of that excellent quality, 

 which the superiority of our climate should enable the cul- 

 tivator to produce. A larger portion of them would scarce- 

 ly, we fear, find purchasers, if placed beside those which 

 are found in Covent Garden Market. True, the clusters 

 are of good size, but then size is not all : it is rather the 

 color, and above all, the flavor of the grape, which places 

 it so preeminent above other fruit. It is here that our cul- 

 tivators fail : in striving to produce good crops in an early 

 age of the vine, and at the same time using every means 

 to increase the size of the bunches and the berries, they 

 defeat the object in view ; and their grapes, in the place of 

 being deeply colored with a fine bloom, and filled with a 

 rich, saccharine and vinous juice, are too frequently 

 of a dingy or pale red color, with a vv^atery, insipid and 

 tasteless pulp. Such, we would not be understood to say, 

 is always the case ; there have been as fine grapes produced 

 by some of our cultivators, as ever graced the tables of 

 the London Horticultural Society's exhibitions; and were 

 it necessary, we might name individuals, whose specimens 

 of grapes exhibited the last season, before the Mass. Hor- 

 ticultural Society, would undoubtedly successfully com- 

 pare with Mr. Crawshay's ; but a large portion of them, 



