10 



GLEANINGS ON HORTICULTURE. 



on the floors of tlie houses may be very advantageously given to 

 vines from the time of the setting of the fruit until the berries 

 are about to swell off, by creating a moist atmosphere at night. 

 They stand in need of this additional nourishment, after having 

 been kept perfectly free from moisture during the period of 

 flowering, and all humidity must cease as soon as the berries 

 begin to colour. To facilitate this grand object, the stem and 

 branches should at all times enjoy the full power of the sun ; the 

 berries* will then be twice the size of 

 those grown from rods trained under the 

 rafters, and of many grapes grown on 

 the spur system. 



Why should not all gentlemen prune 

 their own vines during wet days ? They 

 would soon ascei'tain that the long rod 

 system was far superior to the spur 

 pruning, and that they might grow 

 branches to vie with the grapes of Eschol. How can any one 

 imagine that a single stem carried up beneath a rafter can pro- 

 duce grapes equal to those grown on rods of last year's growth, 

 which have been always exposed to the sun, and whose fine buds 

 proceed from young wood, instead of from shortened side shoots? 

 Through the latter (spur) system, it is quite impossible for the 

 sap to flow as freely as through the former. The earlier a 

 vine is pruned in the fall of the year, the earlier will its buds 

 unfold in the ensuing spring. The sap will then accumulate 

 in the buds, and increase them to their utmost possible size 

 loithout bursting them. This period cannot with safety be 

 considered as having arrived before the month of October. 

 Do not forget to apply white paint to the extremities of the 

 rods, where they have been amputated, for this will yjrevent 

 the vines from bleeding when the sap ascends. When prun- 

 ing, take as many eyes from the one-year-old wood (if well 

 ripened) as may supply yourself and £yg_ 

 friends with young vines. Having split 

 the wood in half, place it in a seed-pan 

 with the eye upwards. Each pan will ^•'^]?- 

 contain about eleven eyes: plant them in light, rich, mould, 

 and keep it well drained. For the first two months, the 



* The exact size of a black Hamburgh grape. N.B. Eighty bunches from 

 one vine, averaging from one pound to two pounds each, and measuring six 

 inches in girth, on four rods, and having four more as future bearing wood. 



