242 AMERICAN GRAPE CULTURE. 



grapes, like Allen's Hybrid, the green should 

 have a tinge of amber, which should be quite 

 deep on the sunny side, and the berry covered 

 with a bright, pearly bloom. In unfavorable 

 seasons and conditions the color will be im- 

 perfect in all these cases, and so will the ripen- 



ing. 



Though the condition of color above de- 

 scribed indicates ripeness, the grapes should 

 not be cut for a week at least after this deep 

 color is established, if they are wanted fully 

 ripe. In purple grapes the color is deceptive ; 

 it will seem to be dark and pure to ordinary 

 observation, but on holding the bunch up to 

 the light a reddish tinge will be seen, which 

 shows that the berry is not ripe. The longer 

 some kinds of purple grapes are left on, the 

 better, for they never get fully ripe. In some 

 of the light claret and green-colored grapes, 

 ripeness is also accompanied with a certain 

 degree of transparency; the lona , however, be- 

 gins to be transparent just after stoning. 



But tasting is the surest and safest of all 

 means for determining ripeness in the grape. 

 The touch is of no use to us here. We can 

 not feel the ripeness of the grape as we can 

 that of the apple, the pear, or the peach, and 



