358 CALIFORNIA FRUITS: HOW TO GROW THEM 



suckers will start at the same place. The more completely the 

 suckering is done during the first two years, the less* trouble in 

 this respect there will be in later years. This is particularly true 

 of grafted vines. 



A few weeks after the first thinning, the single shoot which 

 has been left will have grown 10 or 15 inches. At this length 

 it should be tied up to the stake (see Fig. 1, c). If this tying 

 is neglected or deferred too long, a heavy wind is very liable to 

 break off the whole shoot. A piece of string tied rather loosely 

 about the middle of the shoot is all that is needed. If the vines 

 are to be headed high (18 inches) another tie near the top of the 

 stake may be necessary. 



For vines which are making only a moderate growth this is 

 all the treatment needed during the summer. Strong-growing 

 vines in rich soil, however, should be topped. 



Topping. The object of this is to force the shoot to send 

 out laterals at the right height above the surface of the soil, to 

 be used as spurs during the following year. This topping is 

 an operation which requires a good deal of judgment. If the 

 topping is done too soon, laterals will not start, but a new ter- 

 minal shoot will be formed. This is not a serious defect, how- 

 ever, but simply necessitates a second topping two or three 

 weeks later. Neither will the laterals start if the topping is 

 done too late, or if they start they will not mature, and the vine 

 is weakened by the removal of foliage without any compensating 

 advantage. 



Until experience has shown the proper time for the variety 

 and locality, it is best to top when the shoot has grown to from 

 8 to 12 inches above the top of the stake, and if necessary top 

 again later. 



The shoot should be topped within 1 or 2 inches of the top 

 of the stake, if the stakes have been chosen and driven as advised 

 above (see Fig. 1, c). This will insure the growth of laterals 

 just where they are needed for the next winter pruning. 



The vines on which a cane has been left and tied up during 

 the preceding winter must be treated a little differently. The 

 removal of underground shoots or suckers is the same. Instead 

 of thinning out the shoots to a single one, as for the vines just 

 described, all the shoots should be left to grow, except those too 

 near the ground (see Fig. 2. b). 



As a rule, all shoots between the ground and the middle of 

 the stakes should be taken off. It is even more important that 

 this should be done early than in the case described above. If 

 the lower shoots are allowed to become large and then removed, 

 not only is the vine weakened by the removal of mature leaves, 

 but the stem of the vine is suddenly exposed to the direct rays 



