204 HISTORY OF FRUITS. 



vine of the Syrian kind, in a hot-house at Welbeck, that 

 produced sixteen different sorts of grapes from as many 

 graftings. 



On this subject, Thomas Andrew Knight, Esq. says in 

 a paper to the Horticultural Society, read the 18th of 

 September, 1821, " I selected three cuttings of the black 

 Hamburgh grape, each having at its base one joint of two 

 years old wood. These were inserted in, or rather fitted to, 

 branches of nearly the same size, but of greater age; and 

 all succeeded most perfectly. The clay which surrounded 

 the base of the grafts was kept constantly moist : and the 

 moisture thus supplied to the grafts operated very bene- 

 ficially, at least, if it was not essential to the success of 

 the operation. 



" A very skilful gardener in my vicinity, to whom I men- 

 tioned my intention of trying the foregoing experiment, 

 was completely successful by a somewhat different method. 

 He used grafts similar to mine ; but his vine grew under 

 the roof of the hot-house, in which situation he found it 

 difficult to attach such a quantity of clay as would supply 

 the requisite degree of moisture to the graft; and he 

 therefore supported a pot under each graft, upon which 

 he raised the mould in heaps sufficiently high to cover the 

 grafts, and supply them with moisture." 



While industry and ingenuity are so busily employed 

 to forward the growth of this delightful fruit that we 

 may taste of autumn ere summer has arrived, let it be our 

 study to point out the most effectual way of retarding the 

 maturity of the grape, and thus assist to join, as it were, 

 the two ends of the year, and keep Bacchus's favourite 

 clusters always on our board. King Stanislaus, to pro- 

 long the duration of grapes in an age that had not begun 

 to forward them by steam, employed the ingenious device 

 we are going to lay before the public, as an old Polish 

 practice, that may be turned to many advantageous pur- 

 poses in horticulture. 



