COMPOSITION OF FRUIT TREES 87 



seedless, and come from Smyrna ; and currants 

 { Uva passes minores) are sun and shade dried, and 

 are from a small variety of vine which is grown in 

 the isles of the Grecian Archipelago. The con- 

 sumption of the Greek currant in Great Britain is 

 over 63,000 tons per annum. 



The history of the currant- vine is most interest- 

 ing. It is surmised that the people of the western 

 part of Asia made wine from grapes dried in the 

 sun in pre-historic times. The ancient Greeks 

 preferred wine made from dried rather than fresh 

 grapes, and according to Ariston of Chios, the 

 nectar on the Olympian dinner-table was made 

 from dried grape wine and honey. 



" Long life to the grape ! for when summer is flown 

 The age of our nectar shall gladden our own." — Byron. 



The proper cultivation of the currant-vine re- 

 quires great experience and care. When an old 

 trunk has lived about a hundred years, and shows 

 signs of decay, a grave is dug around its roots, and 

 the old tree is buried with one or two of its latest 

 shoots attached to it. These shoots are left to 

 project out of the ground some six inches, and are 

 fed by the buried parent for two or three years, 

 when they become fuUy grown plants — hence the 

 poets sing of the " immortal vine." 



Many attempts have been made to transplant 



