18 



THE ILLINOIS FAEMER. 



Jan 



pregnate the percolaiing water. In some plac^ 

 the fissile sandstone constitutes a larger proportion 

 of the soil. This is particularly the case on Troy 

 Hill. Reserve township, north of Allegheny city, 

 where there are numerous vineyards covering near- 

 ly one hundred acres, some of which are very pre- 

 cipitous, hanging npon the eastern and southern 

 declivity, supported by massive walls of sandstone 

 built at great expense. 



In other places, the tenacious, light colored 

 clayey subsoil of this region, approaches the sur- 

 face, and intermingling with the soil, makes a 

 strong clay. In some situations under draining is 

 yery desirable. 



Preparations — The plow, followed by the sub- 

 soil lifter, has been found by Mr. Knox to be all 

 sufficient for comminuting this soil. With a strong 

 pair of horses to the plow, followed by two pair 

 of oxen to the lifter, he is able to work about one- 



• thijd of an acre per diem. [This is probably inten- 

 ded for the agregate of the three plowings, and not 

 for each plowing. — Ed.] This process is perform- 

 ed in the autumn. The ground is next cross- 

 plowed with the same implements, going deeper, 

 and a third plowing is done in the spring before 

 planting, so that the soil is thoroughly prepared, 

 being stirred from a depth of from 15 to 18 inches. 



The vines are of a summer's growth, from single 

 eyes that are started in Mr. Knox's extensive pro- 



• pagating houses in the spring, and set out in well- 

 prepared soil about the first of June, for the sum- 

 mer's growth in the open air, which gives them 

 very fine roots, and substantial stocky tops. From 

 this soil they are carefully lifted with their abun- 

 dant fibres, and are planted in the vineyard ground 

 with their ro«ts carefully spread out in every di- 

 rection. Sometimes a portion are planted in their 

 stations from the pots directly from the propaga- 

 ting house, instead of spending a summer in the 

 nursery, but such are not considered to be so good 

 though a season is gained by this plan. 



The distance between the vines is six feet in 

 rows that are eight feet apart ; this is for trellis 

 training upon the renewal system. A small stake 

 is set by each plant, to which the shoots are tied. 

 Instead of cutting the little vines back to two eyes, 

 only the feeble wood at the ends is cut off, leaving 

 several buds on the larger plants, and as these 

 grow the weaker are rubbed out and only the 

 strongest allowed to remain. The reason for this 

 is evident — it is to insure against accidental inju- 

 ry to the prominent buds in handling the plants. 

 During the summer the shoots are tied to the 

 stakes, and the next spring they are cut back to 

 two eyes to force otit two strong canes, which are 

 tied up and trimmed of their laterals for three or 

 four feet. In strong vines a third cane is some- 

 times allowed to grow the second season, the ob- 

 ject of which will appear presently. 



Training on the trellis commences with the third 

 season of the vineyard, when the stakes are dis- 

 pensed with. Posts are planted in the rows that 

 run north and south, about twelve feet apart ; to 

 these, strips of boards, three or four inches wide, 

 are nailed a foot from the ground, and seven feet 

 above it, these are the rails to which the upright 

 strips, about an inch square and eight feet long, 

 are nailed. These are placed nine inches apart, 

 from center to center. The vines are trimmed 

 this spring so as to form the two arms, each three 

 feel long, from which the fruit canes are to be 



produced. In a very strong vine, that had been 

 allowed to produce three canes the previous sum- 

 mer, the third shoot is trimmed to three or four 

 feet for fruiting, and tied upright to the trellis bar 

 nearest to the vine stock, while the arms are se- 

 cured to the lower part of the trellis. As the buds 

 on thet<e last break, they are thinned ^ut by rub- 

 bing off a portion, so that only the strongest are 

 left, and these are so arranged that one of them 

 can be trained to each of the upright trellis bars, 

 each arm, eight to each vine. This we should think 

 a tremendous amount of wood for the third sum- 

 mer, but with the soil and treatment to which they 

 are subjected, many of the varieties of grapes re- 

 quire assiduous labor to confine them to the num- 

 ber of shoots, which reach the top of the trellis, 

 and most of the c:'.ne8 also bear a great deal of 

 fruit. Mr. Knox feels confident that his Concord 

 vines will average ten pounds of grapes the third 

 season. Some other varieties, such as the Taylor 

 or Bullitt and Herbement, grow as vigorously, 

 reaching the top of the trellis, and then stretching 

 along horizontally for some distance ; but some 

 kinds do not cover the trellis the first year it is 

 set up. These canes produced from the arms are 

 divested of their laterals during the summer. 



The renewal system of trimming is adopted in 

 these trellises, with some modifications, by adopt- 

 ing the spur pruning when necessary, as will be in- 

 dicated below. In the fourth season from planting 

 and always afterwards, every alternate cane is cut 

 back to two eyes, while the other is shortened, ac- 

 cording to its strength and tied vertically to the 

 trellis for fruiting ; the ?pur produces a new cane, 

 so that one spur supports fruit and the other pro- 

 duces wood. If it happen that the cane of last 

 year is not strong enough for the fruiting, it is cut 

 back and that which bore the previous year has 

 its fruit-bearing laterals trimmed to spurs for fruit- 

 ing, in its stead. In this way, by judicious man- 

 agement, the whole trellis is kept covered with 

 fruit from year to year, and the amount produced 

 is really astonishing, as an instance, I may cite 

 twelve Hartford Prolific vines, which are four or 

 five years old, that produced 620 pounds of fruit 

 this year, from which $125 was realized — apply 

 this to an acre which supports about 1,000 vines, 

 as planted six feet by eight, and we may calculate 

 the proportionate yield at fifty thousand pounds of 

 fruit, this at the low price of five cents a pound 

 would produce $2,500 per acre ! an incredible 

 yield, and one justifying a large annual outlay in 

 assiduous care and labor. 



VARIKTIKS. 



I propose to transcribe a few of the remarks made 

 upon my note paper while passing over the grounds, 

 among the vines, but shall not describe all the va- 

 rieties in cultivation. The first varieties planted 

 were the Isabella and Catawba, the kinds then gen- 

 erally cultivated. Both of these are bearing abun- 

 dantly, the former heavily laden, but not at all the 

 richer for its treatment here, being, as in other 

 places, flat and insipid in comparison with other 

 sorts. The latter less deeply tinted than in more 

 southern latitudes, but producing a magnificent 

 crop of splendid bunches of beautifully perfect 

 fruit. 



The Concord was in vigor, covering the trellis to 

 the top with foliage and fruit — a perfect show. 



