GRAPHS 
8 feet. A most suitable distance appears 
to be 8% feet by 8 feet, as an 81%4-foot 
row can be plowed most satisfactorily 
with a three-gang plow by going twice 
through the row, and the subsequent til- 
lage with spring-tooth and disc may be 
economically done. Many of the newer 
vineyards are being set 8 feet by 6 feet, 
and some even 8 feet by 4 feet. In this 
instance the grower plans to take out 
every other vine as soon as two or three 
crops have been harvested; or else to 
leave all and put up but half the wood 
per vine that is usually put up where 
they are 8 feet by 8 feet. But observa- 
tion has shown that orchardists who have 
set trees closer than they should have 
been—intending to remove alternate trees 
when they arrived at maturity—find it 
exceedingly heartbreaking to remove a 
healthy bearing tree; and this, no doubt, 
will hold with the vineyardist who is set- 
ting 8 feet by 4 feet with the intention 
of pulling out each alternate vine. 
Planting 
The field having been plowed in lands 
of the desired width, stakes are now set 
in the furrow at the interval decided upon 
for the vines in the row. These should 
be lined carefully each way. Then with 
the hoe and shovel, the hole is dug in 
the bottom of the furrow with the stake 
as the center. This can be readily done, 
as the plowing has loosened the soil. 
There is not much danger of setting the 
vine too deep, but rather the other ex- 
treme. The hole should be dug deep 
enough so that the bottom may be filled 
in with surface soil, leaving a mound 
in the center of the hole upon which 
the base of the vine is to rest. It should 
be large enough to accommodate the 
roots without crowding. The roots are 
cut back more or less severely, depending 
on their growth and condition, but gener- 
ally to about eight or ten inches from 
the base. The top is cut back to two 
or three buds. The roots are then 
spread out in the hole so that they are 
equally disposed in all directions, the 
base of the vine resting on the mound, 
with the roots sloping downward at quite 
an angle; then a little of the surface 
LO9L 
soil is tamped firmly upon them. More 
soil is added and firmly packed, until 
the hole is nearly filled, but the soil 
last filled in is not tamped, leaving the 
surface soil loose. The vine should now 
be deep enough so that the two or three 
buds of the top are just above the 
ground. The following winter or spring 
the growth of the previous season is cut 
back to two buds, for we should aim, 
above all else, to get a good, well-estab- 
lished root system. Then at the begin- 
ning of the second year we find our vine 
in apparently the same condition as the 
year of setting. This spring we should 
set the trellis posts, putting on but one 
wire. The trellis is not put up to fix the 
future training, but to get the canes out 
of the way for cultivation. Some fruit 
may set this season, but it should be re- 
moved early. The following spring the 
vine is ready to be trained permanently 
upon the trellis and a variety of systems 
are presented. The grower can choose 
the one he believes best suited for his 
varieties and local conditions. The la- 
bor problem is an important factor to 
be observed in this selection as it is more 
costly to prune and tie some systems than 
others. 
Alleys 
When the vineyard is to cover more 
than three acres it is best to provide al- 
leys or driveways for each such area, 
these to run both parallel and crosswise 
to the row. They facilitate all vineyard 
practices, especially cultivation and har- 
vesting, by permitting ready access and 
shorter hauls. The alleys should be wide 
enough to permit turning with a two- 
horse wagon. The tendency is to provide 
too few alleys rather than too many. 
Tillage 
Frequent and thorough tillage is very 
essential for the vineyard. The first 
spring operation is plowing under the 
cover crops, with the single horse and 
gang plows. This can be done as soon as 
the weather and soil conditions will per- 
mit. A single furrow is plowed up to 
or away from the vines on either side of 
the row; then follow this with the gang 
plow, and, if the cover crop was particu- 
