44 EIVAL SYSTEMS OF VINE-CULTURE. 



that one vine takes much, longer to furnish a house 

 with fruit than a number do ; but this can be met by 

 planting supernumeraries, to be removed as the per- 

 manent one advances. 



A third objection is, that variety of grapes is desir- 

 able in a vinery, and that this cannot be had where 

 only one vine is grown. Grafting or inarching will meet 

 this objection ; and it is well known that many delicate 

 sorts of vines grow better on other than their own roots. 



Thus it appears that the only serious objection to the 

 one-vine system is the difficulty of getting a border of 

 sufficient scope for the roots of a vine of such propor- 

 tions as will fill a good-sized vinery with fruit-bearing 

 wood ; but where such can be had, I fully approve of 

 the extension system," and will now proceed to give a 

 detailed account of one of the best and most successful 

 examples of it known to me, and with the origin of 

 which I had some connection. 



In the year 1838 I became acquainted with the late 

 Mr Peter Kay of Finchly, near London, and up to the 

 date of his melancholy death I continued to discuss 

 with him, verbally and by letter, every question that 

 bore on the culture of the vine. He always maintained 

 the great importance of what he called " carrying a 

 large amount of foliage on the vine " as the only sure 

 way of keeping up its stamina, and acted on this him- 

 self. I used to reply, that practically it was not ex- 

 pedient to allow more than two leaves to grow beyond 

 the bunch. This, with the sub-laterals stopped at one 

 leaf, I considered sufficient, and pointed to the exam- 

 ple of the houses at Oakhill, near Barnet, then and for 

 twenty years so ably managed by Mr Davis, who pro- 

 duced splendid crops of grapes, ripe in March and 

 April, for many years in succession from the same 



