THE VINE. 



285 



proceeding from a bud on the last year's shoot, 

 or from older wood, is capable of bearing fruit. 

 Therefore, whether we leave the last year's 

 shoots long or short, or cut them back to within 

 a few eyes of the base, or even to the lowest 

 eye, still, on the shoot or shoots which push 

 there may be fruit. It is necessary to bear 

 in mind that if there are plenty of eyes on 

 young rods of the preceding season's growth, 

 latent eyes will not readily push from old wood. 

 Some growers depend on the last year's shoots 

 for fruit, and leave a few at considerable length 

 for that purpose; others adopt the system of 

 cutting back, nearly close to the stem, all the 

 last year's wood. 



Accordingly there are three systems in use, 

 termed the long rod, the extension, and the 

 spur systems. Good crops have been obtained 

 for several years in succession by each of the 

 above methods; and that being the case it is 

 evident that productiveness does not depend 

 on any particular mode of training. Whatever 

 this may be, the production of foliage, and 

 its maintenance in an efficient state, should 

 be the primary consideration. 



Large crops of fruit for a few years may be 

 obtained from strong, well-conditioned Vines; 

 but if the quantity of foliage be not equal to 

 supplying the roots with a due share of elab- 

 orated sap, general weakness will ensue. Roots 

 under certain circumstances will continue to 

 grow for a time, although there may be no 

 leaves on the plant; but the growth of roots 

 cannot be long carried on independent of the 

 leaves. If the foliage is scanty, the roots will 

 be few; if unhealthy, the roots will soon become 

 unhealthy too. The whole of the leaves should, 

 as far as possible, be well exposed to sunlight. 

 For the maintenance of a healthy, vigorous 

 state, that mode of pruning and training is the 

 best which admits of the greatest amount of 

 healthy foliage. 



The Long-rod System. — It is generally admitted 

 that larger bunches are obtained by this than 

 by the spur system; although for a greater 

 weight of fruit under the same extent of glass 

 the spur system is preferred. In long-rod prun- 

 ing, the principle is to train a shoot of the last 

 year's growth to produce shoots to bear fruit 

 in the current year, shortening it more or 

 less according to its strength. From the buds 

 formed on it last season young shoots will 

 push and bear fruit in the present. After 

 bearing, this rod is cut away, and thus all the 

 two-year-old wood is dispensed with. As by 

 this system the two-year-old rods have to be 



cut away in the autumn, young shoots must be 

 trained up during the summer in order to be 

 ready to replace them; and these, in their turn, 

 are cut out in the autumn of the following 

 season, and are then replaced by shoots of that 

 summer's growth. Long -rod training in its 

 simplest form is accomplished as follows : — 



Plant the Vine, train up one shoot, and when 

 the leaves have fallen from the young rod of 

 the first year's growth prune it back to the 

 bottom of the rafter. In the next season train 

 up only two of the best shoots, and when they 

 have completed that season's growth cut one of 

 them back to two eyes at the base. The shoot 

 left at greatest length will likely bear some 

 fruit; the other, cut back to two eyes, will 

 produce two shoots. In autumn the one that 

 bore the fruit should be cut out, to be replaced 

 by one of the two young shoots, cut back ac- 

 cording to its strength, the other young shoot 

 to be cut back to two eyes. 



The Extension System. — By this system one or 

 two Vines may be trained to fill the whole of 

 a house. Most of the old Vines noticed in the 

 opening chapter are grown on this principle. 

 The Vine is planted in the centre of the front 

 of a house if a lean-to, and at either end if span- 

 roofed. In the last-named case a single rod 

 should be trained under the apex, and from this 

 young rods should be trained down on either 

 side, from 4 feet to 5 feet apart. Another 

 method is to plant a Vine in each of the two 

 extreme corners of a house and train single rods 

 parallel with the wall-plate, from which rods to 

 furnish the roof may be taken up at certain 

 distances apart. In a lean-to house the young 

 Vine should be cut down level with the eaves 

 or wall-plate, and a shoot trained out on either 

 side to form the base from which rods may be 

 taken up the roof. 



Extension, then, really embraces the long-rod 

 and spur systems, as the first named has to be 

 put into practice to lay the foundation, as it 

 were, by filling the house with the requisite 

 number of rods, after which the spur system is 

 followed. While the house is being filled, 

 temporary Vines can be made to supply a good 

 deal of fruit; these can be cut away as space is 

 required. 



The Spar System (fig. 1067). —This is the 

 method most generally adopted. Assuming that 

 a one-year Vine has been pruned back to the 

 length of 5 feet or 6 feet, and is to be started; 

 bend the point round so that the rod describes 

 a semicircle. This is done to secure a more 

 even break of buds by equalizing the flow of 



