THE GRAPE VINE. 



623 



the wood perfectly. Indeed, if it is not conve- 

 nient to allow a large admission of air when 

 they are growing, it would benefit them much 

 to be removed to a cool house, where they 

 would have the benefit of more air and a lower 

 temperature at night. By the beginning of Sep- 

 tember, if the following directions have been 

 followed, the vines will be ripe enough to place 

 out of doors. The north side of a wall is the 

 best place, and the pots should be laid on their 

 sides, and every means taken to throw the 

 plants into a state of rest; the cultivator will 

 thus find himself in possession of vines which, 

 for strength and vigorous habits, may justly be 

 mistaken for older plants. If the above mode 

 of obtaining fruiting vines for one year should 

 be thought too troublesome, from the plants 

 requiring bottom-heat during their first stage, 

 the eyes may be planted singly as before in 

 48-sized pots, and set in any house or pit where 

 there is a little heat ; they will be longer by 

 this method of developing their roots, and may 

 not want shifting into larger pots before May or 

 June, when the plants may be shifted into 24- 

 sized pots, in which they may remain through 

 the season in any house or pit in which room 

 can be found for them, paying attention to 

 watering, tying up, &c. They may be stopped 

 when 2 or 3 feet high, and, when the wood is 

 fully ripened, removed out of the house, and 

 plunged in any material out of doors that is a 

 non-conductor of heat. In February or March 

 cut these plants down to two or three eyes, 

 shake them entirely out of the pots, and place 

 them in similar sized pots to fruit in as the for- 

 mer ones, taking care to spread their roots (in 

 potting) regularly through the soil, that when 

 growth commences each spongiolet may be in 

 immediate contact with food : this is a much 

 better practice than placing them in a pot with- 

 out disturbing the ball, as is often done. The 

 same routine of management must be followed 

 with these through the season as recommended 

 for the others. From the larger amount of 

 organisable matter the vines possess by this 

 mode of treatment, they will generally be found 

 stronger than those raised the same year, and 

 they possess the advantage of ripening their 

 wood earlier in the summer." The article from 

 which the above quotation is taken is continued 

 at p. 228 of the work last quoted; and as we 

 deem this the very best we have met with on 

 the culture of the vine in pots, we consider it 

 would be very imperfect were we to withhold 

 the following excellent remarks. " The next 

 consideration," says Mr Spencer, " is the time 

 you wish your grapes to ripen ; this being ascer- 

 tained, it is quite easily known when to commence. 

 It may be stated that vines under the above-men- 

 tioned treatment will be ready for forcing early 

 in November, and consequently will ripen their 

 crop by the end of March. As the principal 

 use of vines in pots here (Bowood) is to occupy 

 the houses (where vines are planted on the out- 

 side) during the period when they are inactive — 

 say from November to May — those in pots are 

 generally forwarded in their first stage in any 

 pit or house whose temperature may happen to 

 suit them; and finally, when the wood of the 



permanent vines is sufficiently ripened to allow 

 of their being placed outside, the pots are taken 

 in, and arranged in their places on shelves put 

 up for the purpose ; by these means the houses 

 are of far more use than if they remained empty 

 half the year. However, the precise mode in 

 which the vines are to be fruited depends on the 

 kind of houses the cultivator has at his com- 

 mand; a fiued pit answers well, but the best 

 description of houses is that which admits the 

 rays of sun to pass through it in the winter at as 

 near right angles as can be. Such a house, ad- 

 mitting considerably more light during the winter 

 months, is much more suitable for such a plant 

 as the vine than low flat houses." Hence the 

 great advantage of span-roofed houses. " What- 

 ever the house is, if not perfectly ready for the 

 vines when you wish to begin forcing, get them 

 placed in a dung frame, where you can give 

 them a moist heat of 55°. This will cause their 

 buds to swell regularly, and prepare them for 

 removal to the fruiting-house when ready, with- 

 out losing time. Previous to losing their leaves 

 in autumn, they may, if thought advisable, be 

 disbudded on Roberts' system, leaving a few 

 more buds than you want bunches; but one ob- 

 jection to this system is, that if by any accident 

 through the winter the bud should get injured, 

 it leaves a blank which, had the next buds 

 remained, might easily have been supplied." 

 The following, as regards the weight of fruit to 

 be produced and the after- management of the 

 vines, merits attention. " The number of bunches 

 that may be left on each vine will depend on the 

 soil, size of the pot, &c. When the vines are 

 strong, and No. 2 pots are used, I usually leave 

 six or seven bunches on the Hamburg, the same 

 on the Sweet water, and one or two more on the 

 Muscadine. If the vines are not so strong, four 

 or five bunches on the Hamburg will be suffi- 

 cient. It is much better to have rather fewer 

 bunches, and the berries fine and well coloured, 

 than ill-coloured puny bunches, which always is 

 the case when too many are left on the vine. 

 The vines, from being placed in the house, pre- 

 suming their buds to be swelled, must have 

 their temperatures raised to 55° fire-heat, 65° 

 when in bloom, and it will be better if this heat, 

 by night is never exceeded : of course, on all 

 days when there is no likelihood of sun-heat, 

 the heat of the house should be raised 5° or 10° 

 by artificial means. Air should be admitted by 

 some means or other every da y early ; this is of 

 consequence, or the leaves are apt to get damp, 

 and their texture being so extremely thin when 

 the hot sun and the drying winds of March act 

 on the foliage, they often burn and shrivel, and 

 consequently are unable to swell off the fruit or 

 give it colour. During all the time the vines 

 are in a fruiting state, manure-water in some 

 shape or other must be frequently given ; but this 

 should be in a pure state, and at a temperature 

 equal at least to that of the house." Mr Spencer 

 uses <£ manure-water made by pouring nearly 

 boiling water on equal parts of sheep or deer 

 dung and fresh horse- droppings ; this is fined 

 by a lump of hot lime, is drawn off clear, and 

 when used is diluted with equal parts of rain 

 water. A weak solution of guano is beneficial, 



