498 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ December 1, 1881. 
top, or from being in a cold wet border, what good does it do the 
Vine ? 
My practice for the past dozen years has been to restrict the 
youDg rods of Vines to an annual growth of about 8 feet, cut¬ 
ting away only about 2 feet at pruning time. The laterals 
are allowed to meet, but n’ot to become crowded, and are short¬ 
ened to two or three joints as soon as growth ceases, so that the 
storing process may be concentrated in the rod itself as much as 
possible. Under such treatment it is reasonable to suppose that 
the Vines will make less gross roots, which will be most likely to 
winter well, and there is the least possible amount of stored-up 
sap removed by the knife. All things considered, I think this is 
quite as economical as Mr. Bardney’s plan. If, when I burn the 
prunings, I have a little less ashes to return to the border, he 
must admit that I have taken a good deal less out of it. A 
restricted growth and moderate pruning is more in harmony with 
Nature than this natural growth and hard pruning.—B. Ikglts, 
No doubt Mr. Iggulden has endeavoured to fortify his position 
by strong arguments, and that good Grapes have been produced 
under the system he advocates I do not deny. Nor do I wish to 
assume that all are radically wrong in their ideas of growing 
Vines that do not follow the dictates of those who grow them 
on less restricted principles. 1 am always open to conviction, 
and no one is more willing to reject any system entertained 
—from whatever source it may be advanced—for one likely to 
prove of greater advantage and produce more satisfactory results. 
In the present discussion I fail to see the disadvantages resulting 
from a good quantity of roots. It is unnecessary for me to say 
that a Vine makes roots in proportion to its leaves, and that the 
canes are in proportion to the extent and vigour of their roots, 
and, therefore, better able to produce and bring to perfection a 
satisfactory crop than a Vine is capable of doing when restricted. 
I could mention names of growers who practise a restricted 
system and have largely advocated and recommended it from 
time to time, whose young Vines w r hen they bore one or two fair 
crops of fruit were exhausted and declined in vigour yearly and 
had to be removed. Other instances I can point to where Vines 
in the hands of good Grape-growers and exhibitors have been 
very unsatisfactory after a few years, the Vines not proving 
their lasting properties when subject to restriction ; and the same 
has been said of them—as expressed by Mr. Iggulden in relation to 
those grown on unrestricted principles, “ they have had their 
day.” " 
The principles of unrestriction are largely practised by many 
in this neighbourhood, and in the majority of instances the Grapes 
are superior to those grown under restriction. I should like Mr. 
Iggulden to see a house of Muscats, when the fruit is hanging, not 
many minutes’ walk from here. The Vines are about fourteen 
years old, and have been grown on the system your correspondent 
condemns. This house is described thus, on page 159 of the 
Journal for September 4th, 1879 :—“ The crop is a grand one. 
The bunches commence close to the ground ; indeed some of the 
finest of them nearly touch it, and they hang with great regularity 
all over the house, but as a rule those on the south roof are the 
finer. They are nearly all of handsome tapering shape, and range 
from 3 lbs. to 4 lbs. iD weight.” “ A fact worthy of notice is the 
free growth of foliage that is permitted and its disposition. The 
roof is not unduly crowded with foliage.” “ But this is the case 
until the Grapes commence colouring, when the growths are 
drawn out, and often can be seen hanging from the roof, and then 
gradually removed except the top and bottom. But growth is 
encouraged from the base and termination of the rods, this growth 
trailing on the inside border, which is covered as thickly as an 
Ivy bank with foliage. The first thought that arises is, Does not 
this extraordinary growth deprive the bearing laterals and bunches 
of some support ? The crop gives a very emphatic answer in the 
negative. From the base of one or two Vines growths of great 
vigour were rambling for 20 or 30 feet on the surface of the 
border, and yet the wood and fruit of those Vines were as fine if 
not finer than those of other Vines which had not produced such 
luxuriant basal growth. This growth is encouraged for the pur¬ 
pose of stimulating active root-action, from which the crop benefits. 
On lifting up the mass of foliage resting on the border the 
manure-surfacing is seen to be completely permeated with white 
roots, which go far to explain the fine condition of the Vines and 
crop. This almost wild extension of laterals, in positions where 
they do not crowd the Vines, I observed at other places ‘ about 
Liverpool,’ where Grape culture is well carried out, and the fact 
is worthy of mention and of the attention of cultivators in other 
districts where a different and closer system of stopping the 
laterals prevails.” The two crops on these Vines, since the above 
notes were written, have been even superior, and worth a long 
journey to see. I can mention other Vines grown where un¬ 
restricted principles have been resorted to, not only being more 
lasting, but they have borne heavier crops of fruit than any re¬ 
stricted Vines I have seen. Vines thus grown are not so liable— 
when free growth is continued both at the base and top—after 
a few years to become exhausted or produce smaller bunches as 
those restricted, stopped, pinched, and confined to a single stem. 
Last year I saw a fine house of young Vines grown on Mr. 
Iggulden’s principle, the supernumeraries being left 8 or 10 feet 
long, and it would have been impossible for them to have looked 
more promising to produce a good crop of Grapes. What was 
the result ? The bunches were small, not averaging half a pound 
in w r eight each, and they much disappointed me. Mr. Iggulden 
seems anxious to know what fruit 1 took from my Vines the 
second season, and in return perhaps he will say what he can 
take from permanent restricted Vines. I took the second year 
6 lbs. of Grapes, and the third 12 to 13 lbs. from each Vine, some 
of the bunches of Black Hambnrghs weighing 3| lbs. each. They 
finished well, and have made good strong wood—as strong as 
could be wished without being pithy—and showed no debilitating 
effect upon them ; in fact, I believe they would have carried half 
as many more without injury in the least. I have stated under 
the mark, as I did in the case of the pot Vines, some of their 
bunches weighing over 2 lbs. Having no wish to exaggerate I 
would always prefer to be under than over the mark, and as 1 only 
weighed the whole produce of one pot Vine, which was certainly 
the best, and was carrying 10 lbs. of Grapes all but a few ounces. 
During the first season when planting from eyes it is an impos¬ 
sibility to encourage much growth of laterals at the bottom if 
wished. The eyes only can be plumped and the bottom thickened 
by stopping them as before described. My remarks apply to per¬ 
manent Vines. I will challenge either Mr. Iggulden or any other 
grow r er to prove that a Vine unrestricted at the top thickens more 
than one that is restricted, at the “ expense of the base ; ” but, on 
the contrary, when restricted, and the sap is confined, then the top 
swells to a greater size and produces more prominent eyes near 
the extremities, and thus leaves the lower portion of the rod con¬ 
siderably thinner. This is readily observable in ninety-nine pot 
Vines out of every hundred, and it would be even as marked in 
Mr. Iggulden’s supernumeraries if only stopped and confined to 
8 feet. If Vines in pots are stopped when about 9 inches or 1 foot 
in length, and again when 3 feet, the cane is then more of a similar 
size throughout. If the Vines have been stopped as described it is 
a matter of but little moment how 7 long they are pruned the second 
season ; they do equally as w'ell if left 4 or 5 feet as if pruned 
back near the base—in fact, I am no advocate, if the Vines have 
made good growth the first season, to cut them down wdthin 1 or 
2 feet of the border. No advantage is gained. If left longer 
plenty of shoots will start, which, if allowed liberty to extend at 
the base, the stem will continue to swell, and at the end of the 
season will be considerably thicker at the bottom than the top. 
The second season’s treatment of my Vines after pruning is 
this : If they break well, which they have always done, the 
laterals are stopped about two leaves beyond the bunch ; or, if I 
want no fruit, about the same distance. The uppermost laterals, 
if they are taking the lead of the basal ones, are kept closely 
pinched, and perhaps the leader, if extending too fast, when 3 feet 
long or at the latest when a foot or two longer. I have no further 
standard for regulating the stopping of the leader than the pro¬ 
gress and strength of the lower shoots. The end lateral growth i3 
removed in every instance when pinching the leader, so as to 
compel the main end bud to break instead of a lateral growth 
taking the lead. All the lower laterals are kept pinched (except 
the two or three at the base, which are allowed to extend) until 
this bud has again started into growth. The leader is again 
stopped when it has made about another 8 feet of growth. The 
laterals up to the first stopping are kept pinched, as is usual, 
while up to the second they are allowed to cover the trellis with¬ 
out crowding. Care is taken to obtain growths as near the base 
as possible, which are allowed to extend as wrnll as the leader 
until the top is reached, when they are allowed to go down the 
back wall. The bottom growth which covers the front of the 
border is regarded by growers of Vines on unrestricted principles 
of vital importance to the thickening of the stem and equal distri¬ 
bution of the sap, thus giving to cultivators the advantage of 
producing as large bunches at the bottom and middle of the house 
as at the top. Again I assert, as large bunches cannot be produced 
at the bottom as the top when the Vines are restricted. This is 
proved by the fact that in the majority of gardens where restric¬ 
tive ideas of growing Grapes are entertained the bunches are 
always the smallest at the bottom, and Mr. Iggulden cannot deny 
it, for I am sure he has seen the same fact again and again 
himself. 
