THE GRAPE IN KANSAS. 73 



J. L. STEEL, Minneapolis, Ottawa county : I have 100. vines, planted on a 

 southern slope; they are Concord, Worden, Niagara, Elvira, Pocklington, and 

 Moore's Early. All varieties do well here, when buds are not destroyed by the 

 spring frosts. Plant two-year-old vines, 8x10 feet; cultivate with an eight- tooth 

 cultivator; prune severely in December. My trellis is made of posts and No. 9 

 wire. Always summer prune at the base of the vine, to keep the multitudinous 

 suckers from sapping its vitality. Have never bagged the fruit, but think it a 

 good plan, and would advise it, as an experiment at least, to obtain perfect 

 specimens. Gather with pruning shears; market at home. The birds! the 

 beautiful birds ! are the great drawback to grape culture here. As soon as the 

 grapes begin to ripen, the birds take their share, and some more, and what they 

 leave are not marketable; so that the only return derived from the grape crop is 

 for the table. I have mulched to some extent, but it causes the roots to grow 

 too near the surface ; surface irrigation tends to the same evil. I think that sub- 

 irrigation by means of tiling or pipe would work to good advantage for the grape. 



GEO. GEISSLER, Tescott, Ottawa county: I think grapes do best on a south- 

 east slope, where they get most of the sun. Our sterile uplands, even gravelly 

 slopes, are preferable to heavy bottom land. Set one-year-old vines, 8x8 feet, if 

 you have plenty of room. Prune on the renewal system, in the fall, after the 

 leaves fall, and before the buds swell in the spring; pruning to induce the vine 

 to bear is the one great difficulty not easily explained without practical experi- 

 ments. When the vine has spun out in long, endless tendrills all over the trellis 

 and neighboring vines, it is a difficult job to bring it back to a proper shape. 

 We must keep pinching the ends of the shoots off all summer ; thus producing the 

 young shoots, destined to bear the next season, nearer to the center of the plant. 

 In the fall or early spring they should be shortened in to about five feet in length, 

 leaving three or four buds to the cane and four to six canes to the plant; the fol- 

 lowing year we should try to discard as much of the old wood as we leave young; 

 thus continually renewing the plant, and keeping only young, one-year-old canes 

 for bearing. For a trellis, I use anything that is convenient. Since the average 

 farmer has neither much time nor experience to bestow, it is best to have only a 

 few vines, and those robust and hardy. It matters little how they are supported ; 

 low, bushy vines trailing on the ground bear good fruit, as hot winds cannot 

 damage them so much in that shape as when on high trellises. Plow in the 

 spring, and then keep clean. A five-toothed cultivator is the best tool for this 

 work. I mulch with wood chips or manure, and work it in the following year. 

 Have tried Concord, Martha, Virginia Seedling, Delaware, lona, Catawba, 

 Louisiana, Goethe, Rogers's seedlings, Elvira, Moore's Early, Worden, etc.; 

 have discarded everything but Concord, Elvira, and Moore's Early ; some were 

 weakly and others unproductive. I would recommend these three varieties for 

 this locality. 



WILLIAM A. GILL, Lamed, Pawnee county: I have a few grape vines, planted 

 on dark loam. Set two-year-old vines, six feet apart. Prune in the spring. Use 

 a trellis of posts and wire. Cultivate with a one-horse plow. Do not mulch. 

 Have tried Hartford Prolific and Concord ; the latter does best here. I would 

 recommend only dark grapes for this locality. I consider them a good, paying 

 crop, and would advise extensive planting. Have never sacked the fruit, but be- 

 lieve it would pay, as a protection from the birds. 



S. S. DICKINSON, Lamed, Pawnee county: I have 500 giape-vines growing 

 on sandy river bottom, having a northeast aspect. My varieties are Concord, 

 Niagara, lona, Martha, and Delaware. I plant two-year-old vines; set them 



