24^2 GRAPES. 



Useful instruc- "^^ the bunch covered Avith glass; and thus I ripened fully 

 tions for de- several bunches as early as the middle of July, some even 

 fei^ing^apes, ga^fij^j.^ without any symptoms of scorching : taking care to 

 them the ad- let a due proportion of air flow under the glasses, yet not so 

 vantages of little as I allowed to later fruit; by which management I 

 the heat of a ^^'^^ enabled to eat, from walls of the same aspect, ripe grapes 

 wall, &c. all last summer, and from July to November, whilst many 



of my neighbours did not ripen any before the end of August 

 or middle of September, and many others, from the old pre- 

 judice that grapes ripen best in the shade, neglected to re- 

 move the leaves until they lost the whole crop. 



Another plan that I adopted, and which was most essen- 

 tially useful, was carefully to nail down every branch to the 

 wall, so as to make it come in close contact, as soon as they 

 were of a size to make that operation possible. — And lastly, 

 as soon as the bunches were ripe on the outer side, I had 

 every one turned with the unripe side to the sun; to some 

 even we gave a second turning, (an operation very easily 

 . performed with the hand when thus nailed close,) so that 

 out of many hundred bunches of grapes of different sorts, 

 among which was even the Gibraltar, I not only ripened 

 completely every bunch, but I may with truth say nearly 

 every grape on my wall, the gi'eater part without glasses-, 

 after a certain period, but they were all forwarded by these 

 glasses, removing them from one place to another as I 

 gathered what they had completely matured. 



I also found very useful at the latter cud of the season, 

 those small conical hand caps, which are made for about 

 eighteen pence a piece, by running a rope with a tye from 

 the finger hole at the point along the inner side, and there 

 suspending them by a loop of cord to a nail on the wall ; 

 by which means they hang perpendicular with the wall's 

 face, and are capable of covering and protecting from sluggs 

 five or six bunches at once, brought together by altering 

 the nailing. But this contrivance, which unites oe con omy 

 with utility, (for at this season they are qjit of use for any 

 other purpose,) should only be applied when the grapes are 

 advancing fast to maturity ; as I have found by experience 

 that the colour of the glass being green does not much 

 advance their ripening, and that at the very latter part of 

 the season it rather retards it. — For all my trials have 



taught 



