VITIS. 



fhouldCTS, as alfo the lefs proje£ling parts of the bunch, 

 fhould be fufpended by fmall firings to the rafters, and 

 every part raifed to a horizontal pofuion. In thinning the 

 berries, great care (hould be taken to leave all the moll pro- 

 jefting ones on every fide of the bunch. In very clofe- 

 growing bunches, it will be neceflary to clip out more than 

 two-thirds of the berries ; in fome one-half ; but in the 

 •oofe-growing kinds, one-third is generally fufficient. By 

 this means the remaining berries will fwell well, grow to a 

 great fize, and not be fubjeA to rot ; as they are apt to do 

 in a hot-houfe, when they are wedged together in a clofe 

 manner. 



It is obferved too, that not only the rafters or roof of the 

 hot-houfe, but the back wall alfo above the flue, may be 

 furniflied with fruit. For this purpofe, let every fourth or 

 fifth vine-plant be trained in one fhoot quite to the top of 

 the rafter, and then direiiled fideways ten or twelve feet 

 along the top of the back wall. At the winter's pruning, 

 bring down the part of the fnoot perpendicularly, and cut 

 it off at one foot above tlie top of the flue. The next 

 fpring encourage only two fhoots from the two extreme or 

 lowermoil eyes of each ftioot fo brought down, and train 

 them in a horizontal direftion one foot above the top of the 

 flue. Thefe flioots, however, will grow with greater readi- 

 nefs, if they are trained upwards during the fummer ; and 

 they may eafily be brought to the defired poCtion at the 

 next winter's pruning. They will then form againft the 

 back wall the figure of the letter T inverted. And in the 

 next feafon the horizontal Ihoots will produce new wood 

 from almoil every eye, provided all the fhoots be pinched off 

 from every other part as foon as they appear ; laying in the 

 (hoots from one to two feet apart, according to the kind of 

 vine. And it is advifed in thefe cafes, to train all the 

 fhoots in a perpendicular direttion, and, provided they are 

 flrong and vigorous, to fuffer them to grow to the length 

 of five or fix feet before they are Hopped ; but all thefe 

 muil be cut down to two or three eyes at -the next winter's 

 pruning. And only one flioot (hould be permitted to rife 

 from each tpur the following feafon ; and though they will 

 in general be fufficiently ftrong, and produce two or three 

 bunches a-piece, yet only one bunch ihould remain on each 

 fhoot : thefe will then be large and fine, and the wood will 

 be greatly benefited by fuch pradilice. But thefe Ihoots 

 mull be pruned next winter very differently. One Ihoot 

 mull be left four feet, that next it only a few inches long, 

 and fo alternately. It is added that the vines on the rafters 

 will require a management in future feafons nearly fimilar to 

 tliat delcnbed above ; and though it may not be advifable 

 to prune them alternately fo near to the bottom of the raf- 

 ters as was direfted for the two preceding feafons, it will be 

 frequently found neceffary to cut an old fhoot down to the 

 lowermoft fummer fhoot, as near to the bottom of the rafter 

 as can be. The fide-fhoot on the other rafters fhould not 

 be permitted to ramble over the adjoining lights ; but at 

 the end of every feafon it will be proper to cut fuch Ihoots 

 down to the fecond or third eye next the old wood, pro- 

 vided the bottom eyes are bold and ftrong : this muft be 

 done not only to ftrengthen the vines, but alfo to prevent 

 the roof of the houfe from being too much crowded with 

 old wood. Whilft the vines are young, one rafter will fuf- 

 fice for a vine-plant ; but when they become older, they will 

 require a larger fpace ; efpecially the ftrong-growing kinds, 

 which produce large leaves and bunches of fruit. It will 

 be proper therefore to train flioots fideways on the wall- 

 plate, from the flem of the plant, immediately at its en- 

 trance into the houfe. Thefe fhoots fhould be carried up 

 the adjoining rafters, and the plants growing againft fuch 

 4 



rafters muft be taken entirely away j except it fhould hap- 

 pen that the plant growing againft fuch rafter is trained 

 forward to furnifh the back wall. And when a vine-plant 

 occupies two or more rafters, it will be right to prune oc- 

 cafionally, particularly whilft the vine is young, one or morV 

 of fuch fhoots down nearly to the bottom of the rafter, as 

 this will not only contribute to ftrengthen the plant, but 

 afford means to furnifh the rafters with a lucceffion of young 

 wood. When the fhoots are thus condufted to different 

 rafters, every one may be confidered as a feparate plant, and 

 be trained up in one (hoot ; requiring management fimilar 

 to that mentioned above. Mr. Nicol, however, rejetls the 

 method cf planting the vines on the outfide of the houfes, 

 and his reafons are thefe : firft, he thinks it unnatural that 

 one part of a plant fhould be as it were in Greenland, and 

 the other in the Weil Indies ; and fecondly, becaufe he is 

 convinced that no plant (efpecially the pine) will live and 

 thrive as well under the fhade of another, as when expofed 

 to the free fun and air. To obviate thefe objeftions, he 

 plants the vines in the lobbies between the ftoves and peach 

 and grape houfes ; introducing them through the partitions, 

 and training them horizontally on trelhfes fixed againft the 

 back walls and upright fafhes in front. By which means 

 he renders each of the ftoves as good as any grape-houfe, 

 without being in the leaft injurious to the pines. 



In thefe cafes, he ftates that the front walls of the 

 lobbies were built on pillars ; and a border, both without 

 and within, prepared for the plants, in the fame manner as 

 for the grape-houfe. It is added, that in one trial, tlie 

 fecond year after introduftion into the ftove, the plants 

 completely filled the whole trellis ; and a fine crop, the 

 third year, gave a luftre and richnefs to the houfe ;in con- 

 juniftion with a good crop of pines ) highly gratifying. 



He remarks farther, that the fame methods in regard of 

 watering, wafhing, and fteaming, are to be praftifed here 

 as in the grape-houfe. Air is admitted folely for the fake, 

 and to anfvver the nature, of the pines ; the temperature of 

 the houfe is alfo regulated for their fakes. But the mode 

 of training and pruning is very different from that in the 

 grape-houfe. Here, you have it not in your power to 

 bring on vegetation in that How manner as in the grape- 

 houfe ; and confequently, were the Ihoots to be laid in at 

 as great lengths, they would only break perhaps a few 

 eyes at the extremities, and the reft remain naked. This 

 he found from experience to be the cafe ; although it did 

 not happen for the firft three or four years, owing to the 

 youth and vigour of the plants : but when they had ex- 

 haufted themfelves a little by bearing a few crops, they 

 began to break their buds in the manner above ftated. He 

 therefore made it a praftice to train them only to five or fix 

 feet in fummer, and fhorten them dow-n to one or two in the 

 pruning feafon ; by whith they generally broke all their 

 eyes, and produced plenty of fruit. He further ftates, that 

 in one houfe he tried, for two feafons, to produce crops by 

 laterals ; but found that method attended with more incon- 

 veniency than the above, from the difficulty of procuring a 

 proper fucceffion of ftrong fhoots to produce the laterals, 

 without which they bear very infignificant clufters. He 

 alfo, in the other houfe, produced a ft'cond crop, for two 

 feafons ; but finding it to exhauft the plants very much, he 

 difcontinued it ; the more efpecially, as, having fo many 

 compartments for grapes, the praftice of it was the lefs 

 neceffary. The method is, he remarks, this : juft about 

 the time the fruit is half ripe, and when the under part of 

 the fhoot is alfo ripe to the length of about two or three 

 feet, and the extremity of it in a growing ilate, fliorten it 

 at about two or three feet above the ripe part. It will pufh 



again, 



