CULTURE OF THE VINE AT THOMERY. 305 



bearing two bunches each, making three hundred and twenty 

 bunches on eight feet square of surface." 



The eyes at the bottom of the shoots of the grape are very 

 close together and extremely small. There are no less than 

 six in the space of two lines, or the fifth of one inch. When 

 you cut the bearing branch long, say one or two inches, 

 these little eyes become extinct and do not push ; but if you 

 cut close to them, they grow and give very beautiful bunches. 

 Able gardeners are well aware of this, they frequently cut at 

 a distance of one line only or even less. It is for this reason 

 that these branches never become long under their manage- 

 ment. 



Those who are ignorant of the nature of the vine, cannot 

 conceive how a bearing branch shall have given fruit for 

 twenty years, and not be at the end of the time an inch long. If 

 there be more than two buds that start from the same branch, 

 it is absolutely necessary to suppress or pinch off the surplus even 

 if they have clusters on them. It is necessary to treat the young 

 shoots very tenderly in training, because they easily break off 

 when they are young. You ought not to force them into a 

 vertical position till the berry of the grape is large ; till then 

 all you have to do is to take off all shoots which have no 

 grapes, to break off tendrils, and to pinch off the extremities 

 of the bearing shoots after the flowering has past, in case they 

 grow too long. When the grape has nearly attained its size, 

 it is beneficial to water the fruit from a rose waterpot in a man- 

 ner resembling rain. This makes the skin tender and increases 

 the size of the berries. You gradually uncover the fruit and 

 expose it to the sun to heighten the colour and improve the 

 flavour. If you, wish to leave it out till after frost, you may 

 cover the bunches with paper bags, which are of use also in 

 protecting them from insects and birds. 



We admire, (says the Bon. Jardinier,) as many others do, those 

 branches of the vine, which are carried to two hundred feet in 

 length, and we admit that there are parts of a wall, which can 

 only be covered by branches, the roots of which are very distant, 

 but we know, that when a branch has extended beyond a cer- 



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