THE ECONOMIC PLANTS OF JAPAN— III. 



FRUIT-BEARING VINES. 



rival 

 held 



'N JAPAN, as elsewhere, the 

 grape is queen among fruit- 

 bearing vines. Though in a 

 land where they are several 

 indigenous and formidable 

 vines, the grape has more than 

 its own among these eastern 

 people. It clothes the arbor, shades 

 the dwelling and entwines itself in the 

 affection of its cultivators there as 

 here, and nothing borne of a vine 

 can surpass the luscious fruit with 

 which they are rewarded. Grape 

 culture in Japan is, perhaps, not quite so general 

 as with us ; it is localized and confined somewhat 

 closely to certain sections of the country where soil 

 and climate are especially adapted to this crop ; but 

 this is not due to any special lack of appreciation 

 of the fruit. It is rather due to the fact that being 

 vegetarians almost exclusively the people do not 

 crave fruit to the extent that we do, and the kaki, 

 which is universal, and which has, from time imme- 

 morial, been the fruit of the country, fills their needs 

 so well that it would be a waste of effort to grow 

 largely of other things. The grape is, however, 

 known and grown over the length and breadth of 

 Japan. But, like the pear, it is the leading and fa- 

 vorite crop of certain localities only, while it is 

 elsewhere found but sparingly. 



It is generally conceded by the intelligent Japanese best 

 informed on this subject that their cultivated grapes are 

 not natives of Japan. They have been introduced (at any 

 rate they are never found wild), but just whence and when 

 is unknown. They belong to the same species as the 

 European grape (Vitis vinifern'), and have all the char- 

 acteristics in appearance and taste peculiar to that class. 

 In quality the fruit is certainly far superior to any of our 

 native varieties. I make in this respect no exception — 

 not even for the varieties belonging to the aestivalis group. 

 Well ripened specimens compare favorably with the best 

 European varieties — the Chasselas, Muscat of Alexandria, 

 Black Hamburg and others. It is true, that like their 

 other fruits, they are too often picked and marketed be- 

 fore they are ripe, and consequently never develop their 

 delicious qualities, but when well-grown and fully ripe I 

 know of BO better grapes. The habit of gathering and 

 selling immature fruits is doubtless the reason that foreign 

 travelers often fail to appreciate the grapes. J. J. Rein 

 must have been victimized in this manner when he con- 



cluded that " these grapes are thick-skinned, not so sweet 

 as ours, and have a bitter, strange after-taste." I have, 

 in all cases of well-ripened fruit, found the skin thin, the 

 pulp sweet and melting, and the seeds few and small. I 

 found that a large proportion of the berries had but one 

 seed ; about fifty per cent, had but two seeds ; some con- 

 tained three seeds, and only very few had four seeds, in 

 one berry. 



So far as I have been able to ascertain, the Japanese 

 have but two main varieties, called Aka-hudo and Midori- 

 budo, meaning respectively red and green grapes. But 

 there are several unnamed sub-varieties that belong to 

 these two grapes. They differ somewhat in color, and 

 the berries vary also in form, some being round, others 

 more oval. They are also often named from the district 

 or locality where they are grown. Thus, Tokio is sup- 

 plied with grapes chiefly from Koshiu, a mountain region 

 in central Japan lying west and south of the capital, and 

 the grapes which come from this district, which are the 

 two kinds above described with their sub-varieties, are 

 invariably spoken of as Koshiu-budo (Koshiu grapes). 

 The growers there have attained such skill in cultivating 

 the vines and in handling the , fruit that they produce a 

 better article than other growers, and their fruit sells for 

 better prices, varying with the supply from five to ten 

 cents a pound. A good illustration of the Red Koshiu 

 grape is given in Fig. i. It is a typical bunch in appear- 

 ance, though perhaps slightly above the average size ; but 

 it is not by any means an extra large bunch. The illus- 

 tration explains all but the color, which is a clear brown- 

 ish-red when ripe. 



The origin of the Koshiu grape dates back so far that 

 it is lost in myth. The following version of its origin has 

 been obtained from a Japanese book treating on the 

 grape. In Koshiu there was a village called Kami-iwasaki 

 (its present name is Iwaye), in which there lived a man 

 named Kageyu Amamiya, who is said to have found this 

 grape in the following wise : " On the 27th of March, in 

 the year 1186 of the Christian era, there was an annual 

 celebration at the temple of that village, situate in a place 

 called Shira-no-hira, a small plain in the Iriaye moun- 

 tains. As Kageyu Amamiya walked toward the temple 

 to worship on this feast day he found on the highway a 

 psculiar grapa vine, quite different from those growing 

 wild in the neighborhood, especially in its branches, bark 

 and leaves. He thought that it must be a new variety, 

 and prompted by a religious impulse, he concluded that it 

 was a gift from the god of the temple, and decided to try 

 to cultivate it. 



' ' His neighbors did not believe his statement that it was 

 a gift from the god, but he adhered to his original idea. 

 In four years from the time he planted the vine he was 



