MUSCATEL RAISINS. 



41 



part of the ground this soil appeared rather hard, and 

 required great labour to break it up, but once broken up 

 it is loose for ever; so much so, that it slides away from 

 under the feet even where there is only a slight slope. 

 There is no difference made in the distance at which the 

 vines are planted, between the hills and the valleys; 

 although in many places, on the former, the shoots 

 scarcely extend more than 10 or 12 inches, while in the 

 valleys they extend to the length of as many feet. They 

 never, under any circumstances, manure these vineyards : 

 they say it would give more wood, but would not add 

 to the quantity of the fruit. The branches are pruned 

 closer to the stock than those of any vines I ever saw ; 

 nothing but the half-formed buds, at the junction of the 

 old and new wood, being left to produce the wood ofthe 

 succeeding year. I could not find an instance where the 

 spur had been left long enough to include the first full- 

 formed bud, which is generally from half an inch to an 

 inch from the junction. The number of shoots seemed 

 almost unlimited; I counted from 10 to 22; there was 

 scarcely any vine had fewer than 10, and they generally 

 had from J 2 to 15. The stock was close to the ground, 

 and not the slightest effort made to raise the shoots, or 

 support them from the ground. Almost every bunch 

 would therefore lie on the ground; and, were the soil of 

 a less gravelly description, the greater part would without 

 doubt be lost. After the pruning, they dig over the ground 

 and lay bare the stock, in order to scrape off the barbe, or 

 small thread-like roots which are near the surface. As 

 scarcely any grass or herb vegetates among these vines^ 

 and the soil is always sufficiently loose, it is evident that 

 they require little digging or cleaning. We went out to 

 visit a peasant, a neighbour of Don Salvador's. He said 

 four or five very fine vines might yield raisins enough to 



