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back to one eye. Madresfield Court is a magnificient grape and it is a 

 pity that it does not do well with us. A handsomer grape when well 

 grown cannot be found and for quality it is very difficult to beat. 

 Foster Seedling is yery fruitful but requires a great deal of care and 

 is only a second class grape when at its best, but where grapes are in 

 demand and earliness with good looks count, it is worth while to grow. 

 Muscat of Alexandria will give good fruit under any method almost. 

 When cut back to one eye the clusters are not large but they are cam- 

 pact handsome and heavier than they look. Pruned to three or four 

 eyes the clusters will be larger, but looser and not by any means so 

 good in appearance. 



Vines that lose their first and second leaves early in the season are 

 better pruned to the second or third eye. Young vines pruned to 

 one eye invariably do well, but in the case of old vines — say ten or 

 more years it is better to cut back to a good plump visible bud. Black 

 Barbarosa pruned to one eye is often totally barren Vines should be 

 pruned at the same time every year. By careful treatment and taking 

 the vines in hand early it should be possible to get in time good crops 

 of fruit Jat any period of the year. Vines may be pruned for fruit 

 any time between January and the end of April. The time when it is 

 best to do 80 depends upon the variety and the time when ripe fruit 

 is wanted. The same variety pruned in January will not mature a 

 crop as quickly as it would if pruned in March or April The Fron- 

 tignans take about four months — Muscats five and Grros Colman takes 

 over six months and in dry seasons will keep in good condition on 

 the vines for a month or more longer. 



Autumn pruning will give a crop but is seldom satisfactory in either 

 quantity or quality. 



In pruning, first cut out all the dead or dying wood. On a well 

 kept vine there ought to be no dead wood. We are speaking now of 

 a vine such as we commonly see, one that receives attention only once 

 a year when half a cart load of worthless growth has to be cut out. 

 Then take out all the thin feeble immature growths that are perpet- 

 ually showing on the trunk and branches of old vines. You ought 

 then to have nothing left except the ripe canes from which you 

 are to get your crop. These you cut back to the bud from which you 

 desire to take fruit. As a rule except in the instances already men- 

 tioned the first bud is the best. It may very likely be almost invis- 

 ible but if you have a good ripe cane it is there nevertheless As 

 you begin so finish. Apply the same principle to all the canes alike. 

 If you cut some to the first eye and other canes to the second, third 

 or fourth eye because they chance to be plump good looking buds you 

 will have an irregular break. The poorest eyes will push firsb and 

 from your best wood you may possibly have no break at all. Cut out 

 completely all sublaterals. Leave nothing on the vine except 

 what has a purpose to serve by being there. There is less risk of 

 bleeding when vines are pruned in dry bright weather. I have seldom 

 been troubled by vines bleeding after pruning neither have I noticed 

 any harm to the crop as a result of it. So soon as growth begins, 

 bleeding ceases and when the sap is in motion, as in every case of 



