V I T 
The St. Peter’s Grape has a large oval berry, of a 
deep black colour when ripe. The bunches are very 
large, and make a fine appearance at the table, but 
the juice is not rich, and it ripens late in the year. 
The leaves of this fort are much more divided than 
thole of the other forts, approaching to thofe of the 
Parfley-leaved Grape, fo it may be diftinguifhed be- 
fore the fruit is ripe. 
The Claret Grape, Bourdelais, or Verjuice Grape, 
the Raifin Grape, the ftriped Grape, and many other 
forts which never come to perfection here, are not 
worthy of any place in gardens, unlefs for the fake 
of variety ; for when they have the afiiftance of heat 
to bring them to maturity, their juice is harfh, and 
without flavour, fo they fhould not occupy the room 
of better fruit. 
All the forts of Grapes are propagated either from 
layers or cuttings, the former of which is greatly prac- 
tifed in England, but the latter is what I would recom- 
mend, as being much preferable to the other; for the 
roots of Vines do not grow ftrong and woody, as in 
moft forts of trees, but are long, (lender, and pliable ; 
therefore when they are taken out of the ground, they 
feldoiti ftrike out any fibres from their weak roots, 
which generally fhrivel and dry ; fo that they rather 
retard than help the plants in their growth, by pre- 
venting the new fibres from pufhing out ; for which 
reafon I had rather plant a good cutting than a rooted 
plant, provided it be well chofen, and there is little 
danger of its not growing. 
But as there are few perfons who make choice of pro- 
per cuttings, or at leaft that form their cuttings right- 
ly in England, fo it will be proper to give directions 
for this in the firft place, before I proceed. You 
fhould always make choice of fuch fhoots as are ftrong, 
and well ripened of the laft year’s growth : thefe 
ihould be cut from the old Vine, juft below the place 
where they were produced, taking a knot, or piece of 
the two years wood to each, which ihould be pruned 
fmooth ; then you ihould cut off the upper part of 
the ihoots, fo as to leave the cutting about fixteen 
inches long. When the piece or knot of old wood is 
cut at both ends near the young ihoot, the cutting 
will refemble a little mallet, from whence Columella 
gives the title of Malleolus to the Vine cuttings. In 
making the cuttings after this manner, there can be 
but one taken from each ihoot ; whereas moft perfons 
cut them into lengths of about a foot, and plant 
them all, which is very wrong ; for the upper part of 
the ihoots are never fo well ripened as the lower, which 
was produced early in the fpring, and has had the 
whole fummer to harden, fo that if they take root, 
they never make fo good plants-, for the wood of thofe 
cuttings being fpongy and foft, admits the moifture 
too freely, whereby the plants will be luxuriant in 
growth, but never fo fruitful as fuch whofe wood is 
clofer and more compad. 
When the cuttings are thus prepared, if they are not 
then planted they ihould be placed with their lower 
part in the ground in a dry foil, laying fome litter up- 
on their upper parts to prevent them from drying : 
in this fituation they may remain till the beginning of 
April (which is the beft time for planting them) when 
you ihould take them out, and waih them from the 
filth they have contracted ; and if you find them ve- 
ry dry, you ihould let them ftand with their lower 
parts in water fix or eight hours, which will diftend 
their veffels, and difpofe them for taking root. Then 
the ground being before prepared where the plants 
are defigned to remain (whether againft walls, or for 
ftandards, for they ihould not be removed again,) 
the cuttings ihould be planted ; but in preparing the 
ground, you ihould confider the nature of the foil, 
which, if ftrong, and inclinable to wet, is by no 
means proper for Grapes ; therefore where it fo hap- 
pens, you fhould open a trench where the cuttings 
are to be planted, which ihould be filled with lime 
rubbiih, the better to drain off the moifture ; then 
raife the border with freih light earth about two feet 
thick, f® that it may be at leaft a foot above the le- 
V I T 
vel of the ground ; then you ihould open the holes at 
about fix feet diftance from each other, putting one 
good ftrong cutting into each hole, which ihould be 
laid a little Hoping, that their tops may incline to the 
wall, but it muft be put in fo deep, as that the up- 
permoft eye may be level with the furface of the 
ground ; for when any part of the cutting is left above 
ground, as is the common method ufed by the Eng- 
lifh gardeners, moft of the buds attempt to ihoot ; 
fo that the'ftrength of the cuttings are divided to nou- 
rifh fo many ihoots, which muft confequently be 
weaker than if only one of them grew ; whereas on 
the contrary, by burying the whole cutting in the 
ground, the fap is all employed on one fingle ihoot, 
which confequently will be much ftronger ; befides, 
the fun and air are apt to dry that part of the cutting 
which remains above ground, and fo often prevents 
their buds from ihooting. 
Then having placed the cutting into the ground, you 
ihould fill up the hole gently, preffing down the earth 
with your foot clofe about it, and raife a little hill juft 
upon the top of the cutting, to cover the upper eye 
quite over, which will prevent it from drying ; this 
being done, there is nothing more neceffary, but to 
keep the ground clear from weeds until the cuttings 
begin to ihoot ; at which time you ihould look over 
them carefully to rub off any fmall ihoots, if fuch 
are produced, fattening only the firft main ihoot to 
the wall, which ihould be conftantly trained up, as it 
is extended in length, to prevent its breaking or hang- 
ing down; you muft continue to look over thefe once 
in about three weeks during the fummer feafon, con- 
ftantly rubbing off all lateral fhoots which are produ- 
ced, leaving only the firft main flioot ; and be fure to 
keep the ground conftantly clear from weeds, which, 
if fuffered to grow, will exhauft the goodnefs of the 
foil, and ftarve the cuttings. 
The Michaelmas following, if your cuttings have 
produced ftrong fhoots, you fhould prune them down 
to two eyes, which, though by fome people may be 
thought too ihort, yet I am fatislied, from fev^rai 
experiments, to be the beft method. The reafon 
for advifmg the pruning Vines at this feafon, rather 
than deferring, it till fpring is, becaufe the tender 
parts of thofe young fhoots, if left on, arefubjedtto 
decay in winter, for they are apt to grow late in the 
year, fo the tops of their fhoots are tender, and the 
early frofts will pinch them, and then they frequent- 
quently are killed down a confiderable length, which 
weakens their roots ; but if they are cut off early 
in autumn, the wounds will heal over before the 
bad weather, and thereby the roots will be greatly 
ftrengthened. 
In the fpring, after the cold weather is paft, you 
muft gently dig up the borders to loofen the earth ; 
but you muft be very careful in doing this, not to 
injure the roots of your Vines ; you fhould alfo raife 
the earth up to the ftems of the plants, fo as to cover 
the old wood, but not fo deep as to cover either of 
the eyes of the laft year’s wood. After this they will 
require no farther care until they begin to fhoot, when 
you fhould look over them carefully, to rub off all 
weak dangling fhoots, leaving no more than one or 
two fhoots, which are produced from the eyes of the 
laft year’s wood, which Ihould be faftened to the 
wall ; and fo from this, until the Vines have done 
{hooting, you fhould look them over once in three 
weeks or a month, to rub off all lateral fhoots as they 
are produced, and to faften the main fhoots to the 
wall as they are extended in length, which muft not 
be fhortened before the middle or latter end of July, 
when it will be proper to nip off their tops, which 
will ftrengthen the lower eyes ; and during the fum- 
mer feafon, you muft conftantly keep the ground 
clear from weeds ; nor fhould you permit any fort of 
plants to grow near the Vines, which would not only 
rob them of nourifhment, but fhade the lower part of 
the fhoots, and thereby prevent their ripening, which 
will not only caufe their wood to be fpongy and luxu- 
riant, but render it lefs fruitful. 
As 
