68 



Garden and Forest. 



[Number 364. 



answer, but the familiar phrase, " vine-clad hills," indicates 

 that high lands have been recognized always as the natural 

 home of liie vine. This is because such situations are warm 

 and dry, and in our climate they are less subject to late spring 

 frosts, owing to tlie fact that they have wliat may be called 

 good atmospheric drainage. Cold air settles into the lowest 

 places, and the high knoll may often be above a cold stratum 

 of frosty air in the valley below. 



Analysis of the grape made in California shows that a crop 

 of three tons of grapes to the acre takes from the soil thirty 

 pounds of potash, a little more than nine pounds of phosphoric 

 acid and a little more than ten pounds o£ nitrogen. This shows 

 that about three times as much potash is used as either of the 

 other ingredients. The ingredients of stable-manure are out 

 of proportion to the needs of the grape, and it should gen- 

 erally be supplemented with potash of some kind. Stable- 

 manure should be used with caution on thin land, and applied 

 late in the fall or early in the winter, so that it will be available 

 for early spring use. When applied in the spring there is 

 danger that it will induce a late autumn growth and render the 

 vine liable to injury in winter. An essential preliminary in the 

 preparation of the ground is deep and thorough cultivation, 

 and it seems to be the experience in most grape-growing re- 

 gions that deep planting is better than shallow planting. Ten 

 inches is generally recommended as the proper depth for 

 planting throughout the grape-growing regions of western 

 New York, and some growers advise as deep as twenty inches 

 even in heavy soils. 



In most cases the question of fertilizing the blossom is not 

 an important consideration in planting, but such varieties 

 as Brighton and Rogers' Hybrids must be planted near 

 other sorts which will pollenize them. Some growers advo- 

 cate that future efforts in the production of new varieties 

 should be in the line of separating the sexes, as has been done 

 in many of the Strawberries. It is said that the production of 

 two crops, one of pollen and another of fruit, is too severe a 

 fax on the energies of the vmes. Besides this, pollen grown 

 from male plants is said to be larger in grain and more potent 

 than those from perfect flowers. Whether this division of 

 labor should be encouraged may be questioned, but the 

 character of the individual varieties in this respect is worthy 

 of attention always, and especially in estimating the merits of 

 a new sort. 



After the vines begin to bear, of course, cultivation should 

 never be neglected, especially in dry seasons. It is an advan- 

 tage to have the soil covered with some growing crop in win- 

 ter if this can practicably be done. The best crop for this 

 purpose is one which will start late — not earlier than the mid- 

 dle of August — and make a rapid growth before cold weather, so 

 that it will form a good covering for the winter. Wherever the 

 winters are sufficiently mild. Crimson Clover seems to give 

 the best satisfaction tor this purpose, and in the west and 

 north-west, perhaps, the common Field Pea approaches nearer 

 the requirements than any other plant. Crops which can be 

 put into the vineyard early in the season would rob the soil 

 of much of the moisture which needs to be so carefully hus- 

 banded for the grapes, but if the vineyard has been thoroughly 

 tilled during the early part of the year the injury from the late 

 crop will be slight, and by the time the green crop will make 

 any serious draft on tlie moisture of the soil the fruit is off and 

 the vine should have ripened its wood for the winter. Pro- 

 fessor Card's address concludes with an elaborate description 

 of the various methods of pruning and training. 



THE RELATION OF CLIMATE TO GRAPE-GROWING. 



An interesting paper on this subject was presented by Pro- 

 fessor G. D. Swezey. Last year he was able to trace a close 

 relation between the amount of rainfall during the growing 

 season and the yield of the apple-crop. He was not able to 

 trace such a relation between the rainfall and the grape-crop, 

 however. Indeed, a wet May is unfavorable to the grape crop, 

 by giving better conditions for the growth and propagation of 

 fungi. Severe winters have, in some cases, caused the destruc- 

 tion of the crop even when the vines have been laid down 

 and covered. Spring frosts, however, are the worst climatic 

 enemy of the Grape. The conditions favoring a frost are the 

 absence of wind and clouds and the continuance of a low tem- 

 perature for some hours. Nearly all the temperature obser- 

 vations at the United States Weather Stations are taken on the 

 top of buildings at a considerable distance from the ground. 

 At the station at Lincoln the thermometers are seventy-five feet 

 above ground. For a period of thirty days during the last 

 of October and the first of November, comparisons were 

 made between the temperature at this point and at the ground. 

 Once during that time there was a difference of twelve degrees 



between the minimum temperature on the roof and at the 

 ground. A difference of six or more degrees was found on 

 seven out of the thirty mornings. One of the chief effects of 

 'wuid is in mixing the upper and lower layers of the atmosphere 

 which prevents this excessive cooling of the lower layers. A 

 moist atmosphere is one of the conditions which tend to pre- 

 vent the occurrence of frost. The moister the atmosphere the 

 higher the dew-point, and if the dew-point is above thirty-two 

 degrees, so that dew begins to be deposited before frost comes, 

 this is likely to prevent its occurrence altogether, for in the 

 change from vapor to dew heal is constantly given off. This is 

 one of the reasons why frosts are more common in the dry inte- 

 rior climates than in the moister eastern ones. The building of 

 fires in the vicinity of the vineyard when frost is imminent is 

 of value in two ways : by forming a cloud of smoke and thus 

 preventing radiation, and by stirring up the atmosphere by the 

 formation of upward currents of air. 



T 



Western New York Horticultural Society. — III. 



HE following is a continuation of the proceedings 

 of the late meeting of this society at Rochester : 



NOTES l.>N ADULTERATIONS. 



Dr. L. L. Van Slyke, of the Geneva Experiment Station, gave 

 some instructive notes on the ways in which chemical adulter- 

 ations affect the interests of fruit-growers. He spoke of the 

 use of tin containing considerable quantities of lead, and 

 thought influence should be brought to bear to have canners 

 use only the better quality of tin, especially with the more acid 

 fruits and vegetables, such as tomatoes, because of the dan- 

 ger of dissolving the lead. This also applied to the solder, as 

 the more lead there was the more easily it melted, and hence 

 solder containing much lead was often used. He drew atten- 

 tion to the higher color of French peas, due to coloring 

 by copper. He also spoke of salicylic acid used for preserv- 

 ing fruits, which, though not a poison, is an irritant to the 

 stomach. In unfermented wines alcohol is often added to 

 preserve them, and vinegar is diluted with sulphuric acid and 

 water. In the case of jams and jellies a cheaper material is often 

 mixed with a more expensive one, and the whole sold under the 

 name of the more expensive. For jams refuse material is often 

 used, and many fruit jellies are made without any fruit, even 

 for the flavoring. Among many samples examined, one of 

 quince jelly was composed largely of beet-sugar and glucose, 

 with flavoring composed of acids. Of thirty-two jellies and 

 jams examined, twenty-nine were adulterated. A large num- 

 ber of the fruit essences are adulterated, especially pineapple. 



In discussing the relative delicacy of tests for copper in solu- 

 tions. Dr. Van Slyke said that the first test was that given by 

 an excess of ammonia in a solution containing copper, thus 

 producing a blue color. It will show one part in 25,000 parts of 

 water. Potassium iodide gives a yellow tinge to a solution con- 

 taining one part copper to 50,000 parts of water. Potassium 

 ferrocyanide, as used in making Bordeaux mixture, detects 

 one part in 400,000 parts of water. Potassium zanothate (a 

 chemical seldom found outside the laboratory), added to a cop- 

 per solution, will give a dense yellow color that will show in a 

 solution of one part copper to 800,000 parts of water. 



The most delicate test of all is that made by immersing any 

 ordinary needle, wrapped with platinum wire, in a solution 

 containing copper. An electric current will be set up and the 

 copper will be deposited on the wire. The ferrocyanide test 

 is so delicate that if if is properly used in making Bordeaux 

 mixture there will be no copper left to hurt the foliage. The 

 ferrocyanide should not be poured into the mixture until after 

 the lime has been thoroughly stirred in. 



An investigation was made concerning the relative quanti- 

 ties of potash and phosphoric acid required by fruit-trees, 

 fruit and nursery-trees. As an average each tree used one 

 and one-third pounds of potash for one pound of phosphoric 

 acid. The fruit averaged four pounds of potash to one of 

 phosphoric acid, while nursery stock required sixteen and a 

 half pounds of phosphoric acid to thirty pounds of potash to 

 the acre, the extremes of phosphoric acid being from ten to 

 twenty pounds, and of potash seven to forty-eight. From the 

 above it will be seen that the orchardist needs to use a larger 

 proportion of potash than comes in ordinary commercial fer- 

 tilizers. He had written to a large number of firms for prices 

 on single fertilizing ingredients, and found most of them willing 

 to sell these separately, though generally recommending their 

 mixed goods. He advised buying dried blood in Chicago, as it 

 was less liable to be adulterated than after it had been sent to 

 New York, where large quantities of leather scraps myste- 

 riously disappear presumably into dried blood. 



