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face bright green, glossy,:and rough; under surface covered with 
flaky down; leaf-stalk, short and thick. . Fruit: bunches larg 
branched, loose, and somewhat pyramidal. Berries: rather large, 
roundish, with long thick pedicel. Skin: thin and tough, dark- 
violet, covered with bloom. Stems: red, especially the extremities, 
io whieh the berries are attached. Sweet. Picked when fully ripe 
the berries readily fall off the bunch; they are also closely set to the 
wood. 
Cultural Notes.---Temperate districts are the best for its eulti- 
vation, but is also grown in the warmer and drier districts. Re- 
quires well-drained soil to set well, preferably rich loam or lime- 
stone formations, where it generally gives best results. Pruned 
with long rods, Suffers but slightly from the oidiwm, but lable to 
be attacked by anthracnose. Berries ripen a little before Cabernet, 
but hang well. Makes a beautiful wine of the claret type, with rich 
ruby colour; rather astringent and bitterish when young, but sus- 
ceptible of correction by blending. Comes into leaf rather earl; 
and in frosty localities should not be planted in hollows. Unlike 
most vines, has the peculiarity of bearing fruit on shoots growing off 
the old wood if the normal fruit-bearing shoots are destroyed. 
Meruot.— Another choice claret grape, and a good bearer; snit- 
able for cool Ivealities. Vine: a strong grower; slim, erect wood, 
short-jointed, streaked, greyish-fawn in colour. Leaves: medium 
sized; five-lobed; wider than long; sinus open; teeth sharp and 
uneven; smooth above, tomentose below; dying off red. Bunches: 
conical, elongated, shouldered. Berries: small to medium, round, 
bluish-black, covered with bloom, juicy, sweet, and pleasant. Ripens 
early (second period). Pruned either short or preferably long. 
When grown in suitable localities, the wine is velvety and matures 
quickly; but does not come up to Cabernet, with which it blends 
well. Does best in cool and moist localities, where its leaves are 
not scorched, and where the berries hang longer on the vines. One 
of the best Australian clarets I have tasted was produced from 
Merlot grapes grown at Bendigo, in Victoria. The vineyard has 
since been found infested by the phylloxera, and was on that ac- 
count destroyed. 
Mararo (svn. Espar, Mourvédre, Lambruseat in N.S.W.).—- 
Largely cultivated in the south of France and in Spain, Italy, and 
Algeria. Season: late (third period). Merits: a good blending red 
wine, but withont much character by itself. Vine: growth vigorous, 
erect grower: short-jointed wood, of a reddish-brown colour when 
ripe; large buds. Leaves: medium size, five-lobed, rough and 
coarse; wwpper surface dark-green, under surface downy and 
whitish; Jeaf-stalk and veins dark reddish-brown; lateral sinus not 
much marked; petiolar sinus open. Fruit: bunches medium, close, 
eylindro-conieal, smal] shoulders, hard, woody — stalk. Berries ; 
A 
