342 GARDENING FOR PKOFIT. 



made in our hardy varieties of native Grapes, that those 

 who have not had opportunities of seeing them will be 

 surprised to find the vast improvement that has been 

 made in this delicious fruit within the last ten or fifteen 

 years. We have now Grapes of -the finest flavor, of all 

 colors, ranging through all the shades of green, amber, 

 red and black, ripening in succession from the middle of 

 August until the middle of October. Immense areas 

 are now being planted with the kinds that have proved 

 most profitable for market purposes, and as they can be 

 safely shipped to almost any distance, there is no need of 

 being dependent upon a local market. There is much 

 misconception as to the age at which a grape-vine should 

 be planted. It is the general impression that they should 

 always be three or four years old. This is a popular 

 error, for no matter how large a grape-vine may be, it 

 will never fruit to any extent the same season it is planted, 

 and the larger it is the more it will sulTer in being lifted 

 and transplanted. Therefore, I always recommend pur- 

 chasers to buy young plants, which not only can be 

 bought at one-third the price of two or three year old 

 ones, but are usually better, even at the same price. If a 

 trellis is made for them, they should be planted at a dis- 

 tance of six feet apart. The trellis may be any height 

 from six to twenty feet, as desired. If planted in vine- 

 yard style in the open field, without trellises, they may 

 be set six feet between the rows and three or four feet 

 between the plants, and tied up to strong stakes. 



The first year after planting, if with vineyard culture, 

 they should be cut down, and only one shoot left to reach 

 to the top of the five or six foot stake. If it has grown 

 strongly and ripened well, that shoot will give a few 

 bunches the second year and may be pruned close, so as 

 to resemble a walking stick, but with the lateral shoots 

 cut back to one eye only that is, the main shoot is 

 allowed to stand, and the side shoots or laterals are 



