282 MANUAL OF AMERICAN GRAPE-GROWING 



of action which enable the grape-breeder to attain with 

 fair certainty what he wants if he keeps patiently at his 

 task. The grape-breeder should inform himself as to what 

 Mendel's laws are, and on the work that has been done on 

 the inheritance of characters of the grape. A technical bul- 

 letin published by the State Experiment Station at Geneva, 

 New York, and another from the North Carolina Station at 

 Raleigh give much information on the inheritance of char- 

 acters in certain grapes, and further information can be secured 

 by applying to the United States Department of Agriculture at 

 Washington for literature on the subject. 



The grape-breeder can hope to progress only by making many 

 combinations between different varieties and growing large 

 numbers of seedlings. He should extend his work to all varieties 

 which show promise in the breeding of grapes for the particular 

 purpose he has in mind. The seed may be saved and planted 

 as directed in the chapter on propagation. Unless he desires 

 to make scientific interpretations of his results, weak seedlings 

 should be discarded the first year, and a second discard may be 

 made before the young plants go in the vineyard. The breeder 

 will soon discover that he can tell fairly well from the character 

 of the seedlings whether they are of sufficient promise to keep. 

 Thus, if the number of leaves is small or if the leaves themselves 

 are small, the vine is of doubtful value ; if the internodes are 

 exceedingly long, the prospect is poor ; slenderness of cane, if 

 accentuated, does not promise well ; on the other hand, great 

 stoutness and very short internodes are not desirable indications. 

 Through these and other signs, the breeder will come quickly 

 to know w r hich vines should eventually go to the vineyard. 



RESULTS OF GRAPE-BREEDING 



There are now 2000 or more varieties of grapes of American 

 origin, all produced within approximately a century. It is 



