Grapes. 



409 



pinch off the shoots as soon as three leaves are formed above the 

 upper bunch of fruit. A less number will be insufficient to furnish 

 food for the forming berries ; a greater number of leaves would 

 doubtless be better, provided there is room on the trellis. A good 

 rule in practice is to allow the bearing shoots, shown in Fig. 428, to 

 pass a few inches above the top wire, before the tips are pinched off. 

 After pinching, the upper bud will frequently " break," or start into 

 a new shoot in which case a second pinching should be given, and 

 so on as long as the "growing season continues. 



Summer pruning consists, in addition to this pinching, in rubbing 

 off all useless shoots when they first appear. Bearing canes should 

 be at least ten inches or a foot apart, and all shoots between them 

 are useless and detrimental, by crowding the foliage, lessening its 

 health and vigor, and drawing strength from the vine. The process 

 of rubbing off is generally begun quite early in summer, or by the 

 time the first shoots are but a few inches in length ; and it should be 

 continued or repeated as long as any intruding shoots spring from 

 the vine. If left late, the lopping of large quantities of leaves 

 always injures the vigor of the vine. 



MODIFICATIONS OF TRAINING. But one mode has been de- 

 scribed, namely, that represented in Fig. 428. Some cultivators 



Fig- 434- 



Fig. 435. Thomery System. 



adopt a modification of this plan, by employing a single horizontal 

 arm, extended in one direction only (Fig, 434), instead of the two 



