Proceedings of the Farmers' Club. 381 



full vintage tins year. The vines, mostlv Concords, six feet asunder 

 one way and four the otlier, trained to stakes. We estimate tlie 

 quantity of fruit to be seven pounds on each vine. The summer 

 pruning has been a little too close, go the ripening was rather uneven, 

 but ten days or two weeks more of sun, no doubt, brought the grapes 

 to fine marketable condition. The price he obtains is from twelve to 

 fifteen cents a pound. It thus appears that the income from each of 

 the two acres in fruit will be over $1,000 per acre. The soil had 

 been fertilized by a few loads of mussels composted with swamp 

 muck. We regard this vineyard as a proof that the millions of acres 

 of untilled land in south Jersey are, in tlieir soil and climate, admira- 

 bly adapted to the growth of the grape ; and the Concord at least 

 grows and fruits luxuriantly in this soil, with but a slight dressing of 

 inexpensive manure. Mr. Spaulding's corn was also noteworthy, as 

 showing what remarkable results follow the use of a little nitrogenous 

 manure in this sandy soil. Some parts of the field were fertilized at 

 planting with two moss-bunkers in a hill. Here the yield was thirty- 

 five bushels per acre. When no fish were used the crop was small, 

 about eighteen bushels to the acre. Where a compost of muck and 

 mussels had been applied the corn was large and the estimated yield 

 as high as sixty or sixty-five bushels per acre. 



Remarkably fine watermelons were produced in great quantities by 

 an application in the hill of a compost of muck and hen manure. 

 We remark this as proving that all these wild lands on the Jersey 

 shore can be made to yield excellent crops by the use of fertilizers 

 that are cheap and abundant. 



On the day following our visit to this farm and vineyard we went 

 over a number of the cranberry gardens or bogs near Manchester. 

 The best we visited was that of John Torry, Jr. It covers seven 

 acres, is of water level or nearl}^ so, wholly free from grass and weeds. 

 He called our attention to what he regards as an innovation and an 

 improvement in the culture of the cranberry. When tlie vines are 

 two years old the growth of the runners becomes very rank, and they 

 lie one upon another, making an elastic bed several inches thick. 

 When this is the case only a few of the lower runners can touch the 

 sand so as to derive sustenance from the earth. To remedy this, Mr. 

 Torry covers his vines in all places where the growtli is rank with 

 two or three inches of sharp white sand. Tliis presses the vines 

 down and beds them in the soil, and they produce largel3\ Kone 

 of the bogs are yielding full crops this year. Mr. Ton-y will proba- 



