VINES. 63 
The roots of a kind of dogsbane (Apocynum) are 
not unfrequently substituted for those of ipecacuanha; 
but, in some instances, this substitution has been at- 
tended with fatal consequences. 
78. VINES are a very important tribe of shrubs , to the fruit 
of which zee are indebted for all our foreign zvines, for raisins 
of every description, and for the dried currants of the shops. 
Several species of vine are cultivated ; but by far the most 
important of the whole is the common vine (Vitis vinifera of 
Linnaus). 
The earliest introduction of the vine into the western 
parts of Europe is stated to have been about the 
year 280, under the sanction of Probus, the Ro- 
man Emperor, wlio. throughout his whole dominions, 
was a zealous encourager of agricultural pursuits. 
There can be no doubt that vines were anciently pro- 
pagated in our own island for the purpose of wine, and 
that there were vineyards of considerable extent in 
Gloucestershire, Hampshire, and some other counties ; 
but, as vines are principally found to flourish in inland 
countries, lying betwixt the thirtieth and fifty-first de- 
grees of latitude, it is evident that there can be no part 
of Great Britain sufficiently adapted to their successful 
cultivation. 
Any person who has seen a hop garden, may easily 
form an idea of the appearance of a vineyard. Vines 
are usually propagated by slips, cuttings, or offsets from 
the roots. These, when they have obtained a suffi- 
ciency of roots, are transplanted from the nursery- 
ground into the vineyard, the soil of which ought to be 
light and rich. They are placed, in this ground, in 
rows, and at regular intervals, leaving space sufficient 
for the vine-dressers and the reapers to pass betwixt 
them ; and as soon as the rooted plants are three years 
old, they begin to bear fruit. The season for pruning 
and dressing them is the early part of the year, before 
the sap begins to rise ; and about the time when the 
flowers appear, the plants are fastened to poles, for the 
