342 SOUTHERN CULTIVATOR. 
stirring, either with the cultivator or hoe, so as to kill the 
weeds, and stir the soil around the plants. This opera- 
tion should be repeated as soon as the weeds begin to 
show thenaselves again When the weather begins to set 
in hot and dry, if a little mulching of littery manure, or 
shore grass, leaves, or anything that will keep the ground 
partially shaded and moist, be applied around the young 
vine, it will be of gr:'at service. 
The vines may be allowed to grow this summer with 
or Withoutstakes, and trained 
to one cane. During the 
summer, small lateral shoats 
will be produced from the 
axil of each large leaf on the 
main cane, which must be 
cut back to one leaf when it 
has grown two or three leaves 
in length. The object of this 
is to concentrate the sap in 
the main cane, instead of its 
being wasted in the laterals, 
that it may be as strong and 
well ripened as possible. 
Fig. 3 shows a section of a main cane, and the small 
line on the lateial where it is to be cut off. 
TREATMENT OF VINES THE THIRD YEAR, 
In November of the third year, the vines are again 
pruned down to the lowest good bud, within four or six 
inches of the ground, as presented in fig. 4. 
yard has been planted with rooted plants, 
a few grapes may be had this year, but 
not more than two or three bunches to 
a vine. 
The vines must now be supplied with 
stakes, and preparations made for what- 4. 
ever mode of training is to be adopted. Some planters 
train their vines to one stake, some to two, others to three, 
and others again to four.. Where only one stake is used, 
the stake is set immediately at the head of the vine, and 
on the north side of it, as in fig. 5. Where two stakes 
are used, they are set out as represented in fig. 6. 
If the vine- 
Fig, 5. 
Fig. 6. 
F Where one stake is used, only two canes must be al- 
lowed to grow this (the third) summer, which will, at the 
end of the season, look like fig. 5 ; if two stakes be adopt- 
ed, like fig. 6, 
'^The summer pruning will consist in rubbing out all 
superfluous shoots, pinching in the laterals, as in fig. 3, 
and keeping the canes carefully tied to the stakes. It is 
a good practice to pinch in the leading cane when it has 
grown four feet in length, or v/hen it begins to turn 
brown at the bottom. This throws back the sap into the 
lower buds, and strengthens and assists their swelling 
and ripening for bearing fruit the next year. Keep the 
vineyard nicely cultivated and all clear of weeds, and 
avoid all unnecessary walking and tr.impUng about. 
TREATMENT OF VINES THE FOURTH YEAR. 
This season the vines will be in good bearing condition, 
and must be pruned accordingly. It is best, however, not 
to train them to bows, or horizontally, until the fifth year, 
as they would be likely to show more fruit than the vine 
could sustain without exhausting it too much for the year 
following. In November of this season, cane a, fig. 5, is 
cut back to the small line drawn across it, leaving it 
about four or five buds, or twelve to fifteen inches, in 
length. From the buds on this spur, the fruit-bearing 
shoots v/ill be produced. Cane Z* is cut down to the low- 
est good bud; the small line drawn across it indicates 
the place where it is to be cut. 
During the present summer, while the spur a is bea-- 
ing fruit, a spur from cane h is trained up for fruiting in 
the year following — say in 1859, for fruiting in 1860. In 
fig. 6, the cane c and d are cut down to three or four buds, 
or eight or ten inches in length, that the two together may 
not bear much more fruit this season than the longer one 
in fig. 5. 
During this summer, two canes are taken up from eack 
spur, in fig. 6, and allowed to bear fruit. The cane start- 
ing from the upper bud is t© form the bow for fruiting in 
tbe fifth season ; and the other is to cut back to form a 
spur, from which a cane is taken during the fifth season 
to form the bow for fruiting the sixth season. This is 
called the renewal system, and is the one generally ap- 
proved of. The bearing cane is cut down annually after 
having borne fruit, and its place is annually supplied witk 
a new cane. 
In the fall of the fourth year, the vine will have the ap- 
pearance of fig 7 ; and in the spring of the fifth year, af- 
ter being trimmed and tied to the stakes, that of fig. 8. 
Fig. 7. 
The two small branches, a, a, below the spurs in fig. 7, 
must be pruned back to where the line indicates; but a 
new shoot must be carefully preserved from year to year, 
HI case of accident to either of the other canes. The bow 
should be from five to eight buds in length, according t© 
the strength of the vine. Great care and nice judgmeat 
are required in bending the bow. They should be made 
in the mornings, and in cloudy, moist weather ; for when 
the wood is very <lry it is more brittle. The bows should b« 
as round as possible, and all sharp bends carefully avoided, 
to prevent fracturing the canes, as without this caution, 
much injury may be done. The object of making the bow* 
is to equalize the flow of sap in all the buds, that the lower 
.buds may start with equal vigor with the upper ones ; other- 
wise, if the canes were left straight, the whole force of the 
sun would be driven into the upper buds, to the great 
detriment of those upon the lower part of the cane. [Many 
persons (ourselves among the number) object to bows, and 
prefer training upon a wire trellis, as will be shown in Uie 
following diagrams. — d, r,]- 
