VINEYARDS. 



55 



The second vine was cut at the first or bottom wire, the 

 third vine at the third wire, the fourth at the first wire, 

 and the remainder in the same way, alternating between 

 the first and third wire. Any vine that had not made 

 a good growth was again cut back as in 1861 nearly 

 to the ground. None of them received any protection 

 during the winter but remained attached to the trellis 

 the same as during growth. In the summer of 1863 

 a shoot was taken from each of the two upper buds, and 

 trained horizontally along the first, or third wire as the 

 case might be, inapposite directions, each vine forming 

 a T. No other growth was allowed, and the laterals on 

 these horizontal shoots or arms were pinched back as 

 they had previously been on the upright shoots the year 

 before. These arms were allowed to bear one or two 

 clusters of fruit each according to their strength. 



In the autumn of 1863 the arms were cut back, 

 varying with their condition, but where they had grown 

 vigorously, from two to four feet were left. Every 

 thing else was removed so that the vines showed noth- 

 ing but a stick in the form of the letter T. No winter 

 protection was used. The training during the past 

 summer, 1864, has been as follows: From each of the 

 horizontal arms, upright shoots have been allowed to 

 grow as often as every nine inches on the average, the 

 intention being to have eight upright shoots or spurs 

 upon each arm when the latter shall have reached its 

 full length of six feet. The shoots from the buds on 

 the end of the arms, were trained horizontally for the 

 purpose of extending them. As soon as the clusters of 

 fruit buds on the upright spurs were sufficiently devel- 

 oped to show their character, the end of the shoot was 

 pinched off so as to leave but one leaf beyond the last 



