INGRAFTING VINES. 255 



stance that most of our native vines possess a degree of vigour 

 and repletion of sap, which far surpass those obtained from 

 other climes ; the circumstance therefore of giving additional 

 developement to foreign vines by ingrafting them on our na- 

 tives, merits particular consideration, and may be the founda- 

 tion of a new species of vine culture in our future vineyards. 

 Speechly remarks, that in England, the ingrafting of vines is 

 but little attended to, although of so much importance ; as a 

 bad vine may be improved without loss of time, and he states 

 that he has had fine grapes from the same year's grafts, the 

 shoots from which if permitted would have run from thirty to 

 forty feet, the first summer. He mentions a vine of the Syrian 

 kind in a hot house at Welbeck, which produced sixteen 

 different varieties of grapes from as many graftings. 



William R. Armistead, Esq. was among the first who 

 adopted the practice in our own country, he having ingrafted 

 in 1819, four vines of the native blue or bunch grape of Vir- 

 ginia, with the sweet water variety, which in the third season 

 produced upwards of two barrels of fruit. And at his sug- 

 gestion, Col. Gratiot made similar attempts by inserting " the 

 Portugal or Lisbon grape, such as is usually received in jars, 

 upon the Fox grape, the plants of which were transplanted 

 from the swamps only the previous autumn, which experiment 

 was also eminently successful." 



The period for the operation is when the sap begins to 

 rise, and it seldom fails of success when performed in the 

 ground. If it is desired to have many varieties ingrafted on 

 one vine, that can be done successfully by trailing the several 

 branches under ground to the points desired, and then in- 

 grafting each in the earth in the manner hereafter Detailed. 

 It is preferable that the scions be cut some time previous, and 

 that they be preserved in the same manner as cuttings are 

 until required for use. The principal benefit to be derived 

 from ingrafting, is to transform a vineyard in a short space of 

 time which contains many varieties into one, containing as few 

 as may be deemed advantageous, or to entirely or partially 

 change a vineyard, when the varieties contained in it are 



