100 Notes on Market-gardening and Vine-ciiUure 
that the small vine-growers, who require no extraneous labour, 
work with great industry and intelligence in their vineyards, 
and it is not yet absolutely proved that the new system produces 
as much wine of better quality as the old one, or even more wine 
of the same quality. 
The work of the year may be briefly described as follows : — 
After the vintage, which generally occupies from the first of 
September to the middle of October, the stakes to which the 
vines are tied are pulled up and stacked in the vineyards. In 
winter the ground is dug all over, or in those places where it 
seems most to require it. Some caution is requisite, for although 
the digging assists in destroying insects, which are then buried 
in the ground, on the other hand it hastens the coming of the 
vine into leaf in the spring, and thus exposes it more to the de- 
structive effects of spring frosts. In February, or, still better, 
in March, the vine is pruned, layering is done if required ; the 
land is hoed and cleaned, and the stakes are replaced ; but the 
vines are not then tied to them. When the vines are sufficiently 
in leaf, but before they are in flower, they are tied to the stakes 
— generally about the beginning of June. Afterwards, the use- 
less slips are cut off, and those branches which have grown 
too vigorously are pruned down to about 20 inches. This 
pruning is repeated several times according to the luxuriance 
of the growth of the vine. However much these prunings may 
weaken the plant and diminish the crop, they are absolutely 
necessary, under the general system of planting, to enable the 
sun's rays to penetrate to and ripen the fruit, more especially the 
bunches near the ground. Several hoeings are also necessary to 
destroy weeds, which in the light and poor soils of Champagne 
are very detrimental to the vintage. 
For making new vineyards, the ends of the pruned branches 
are planted in a slanting position in February or March, at the 
time of pruning, in a nursery-bed, and grown there for two or 
three years with the special object of enabling the plants to 
acquire a good development of root. For this purpose they are 
pruned down every year, so as to leave two or at most three eyes 
of the last year's wood. The fruit comes on the new wood of 
the same year, but it is generally five years before a vine is 
allowed to come into bearing. 
An acre of vineyard of a good quality will produce generalh- 
from 130 to 160 gallons of marketable wine, but sometimes a 
much larger quantity, and occasionally almost nothing. 
An ordinary peasant proprietor with his family can manage 
between 3 and 4 acres without hired labour, but the peasants do 
not often possess so large an extent of land. Owing to the 
high price of everything, especially food, lodging, and manure, 
