AND WINE MAKING. 



49 



making their second season's growth, we had, in the be- 

 ginning of June, the most destructive hailstorm I have 

 ever seen here. The vines were not only stripped of all 

 their leaves, but the young succulent shoots were also cut 

 down to about 3 feet from the ground. The vines, being 

 young aad vigorous, pushed out strong laterals, each of 

 them about the size of a fair, medium cane. In the fall, 

 when I came to prune them, the main cane was not long 

 enough, and I shortened in the laterals to from four to 

 six buds each. On these I had as fine a crop of grapes as 

 I ever saw, with large, well developed bunches and berries, 



Fig. 9.— TKAIBING SLOW QKOWINQ VARIETIES. 



and a great many of them, as each bud had produced its 

 fruit-bearing shoot. Since that time I have followed this 

 method altogether and have obtained the most siatisfac- 

 tory results. 



JShe ground should be kept loose and mellow during 

 the summer, cultivating as often as may become necessary 

 during dry weather, and the vines are to be tied neatly 

 to the trellis with bark or straw. 



There are many other methods of training, as the old 

 bow and stake training, so much in vogue formerly. But 

 it crowds the whole mass of fruit and leaves so closely, that 

 mildew and rot will follow as a natural consequence ; it 

 should have been given up long ago. But we have a class 

 of grape growers who never learn or forget anything. 



