CULTIVATION. 107 



8 to 12 inches named. Nevertheless, it would be impracti- 

 cable to plant the sets so far away from the pole marks as 

 to preclude the risk of contact in poling, such procedure 

 inevitably increasing the difficulty of working the ground 

 and training the bine. On the other hand, where wires are 

 used, the position of the sets with respect to the marks is 

 immaterial, though of course uniformity must be maintained 

 throughout the entire garden. The holes are dug with the 

 spade or hop mattock, the latter being most in use ; its 

 form varies according to local custom and requirements, 

 the pointed shape (Fig. 25) being most suitable for stony 

 and heavy land and the broad form (Fig. 26) for lighter soils. 



The holes are made about 8 to 12 inches in diameter and 

 12 to 14 inches deep. Before planting the sets, half a spade- 

 ful of strong compost or a handful of well-rooted dung should 

 be placed in the bottom of each hole and covered over with 

 a thin layer of soil. When the sets are not planted as soon 

 as they have been taken up out of the ground it is advisable 

 to water them before setting, since the soil sticks to them 

 better after this treatment and they sprout more quickly. 



The question now arises as to the best number of sets to 

 plant in a hole : one, two, or more ? So far as experience 

 goes, one is quite sufficient for each hole, provided the set 

 is fresh, strong and healthy, i.e., fulfils all the requirements 

 exacted of a good, sound set. The correctness of this view 

 is by no means impeached by the practice, customary in 

 many places, of planting two and three sets in each hole, 

 the object of which procedure is to avoid the necessity of 

 replacing such sets as fail to strike, since it is hardly pro- 

 bable that where two or three are planted together they 

 will all perish by rotting or otherwise, and so leave blanks 

 to fill up. Moreover the idea is often met with that the 

 individual sets will sooner or later unite to form a single 

 stock, an impression which is, however, erroneous. Even 



