OF THE VINE. 



67 



The causes being thus assigned for the pre^ 

 Terence given to plants raised by this method, and 

 the advantages gained by this mode of practice 

 thus specified, I shall now proceed to give direc- 

 tions at large an this subject. 



The first care should be to make choice of 

 proper and well-ripened wood to form the cuttings, 

 as it is absurd to imagine that good plants can ever 

 be produced from wood imperfectly ripened ; in- 

 deed the case here is exactly similar, and may be 

 considered in the same light, as between plants 

 raised from well -perfected seed, and plants grow- 

 ing from seed not well matured. 



Some persons are of opinion, that cuttings taken 

 from the lower part of the Vine are preferable to 

 those that grow higher, and at a distance from the 

 root. But for my part, I confess I could never 

 find any difference, so as to induce me to give the 

 preference to either, provided the wood was equally 

 well ripened. But it generally happens that the 

 best wood is produced at the most distant parts 

 from the root, and especially in Vines trained 

 against rafters in the hot-house, where there is 

 generally a very distinguishable difference between 

 the top and the lower parts of the plants, in re- 

 spect to goodness. 



The new shoots constantly appear first at the 

 most distant parts, and are generally more strong 

 and vigorous, in proportion to their distance from 

 the roots. I mention this particular, because for- 

 ward shoots from Vines, forced early, are the most 



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