December, 1858 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
367 
Girdling the Grape Vine- 
are plenty, they form a considerable part of his 
food.” The remainder of its sustenance is made 
up of small snakes, lizards, mice, and birds, and 
it rarely eats anything that it has not killed for 
itself, and even this is occasionally rejected, if 
out of condition. In illustration of this, Wilson 
relates the following anecdote :—“ One morning, 
a gentleman observed one of these hawks dart 
down on the ground and seize a mouse, which he 
carried to a fence-post, where, alter examining 
it for some time, he left it, and, a little while af¬ 
ter, pounced upon another mouse, which he in¬ 
stantly carried off to bis ne»t, in the hollow of a 
tree hard by. The gentleman, anxious to know 
why the hawk had rejected the first mouse, went 
up to it, and found it to be almost covered with 
lice, and greatly emaciated! Here was not only 
delicacy of taste, but sound and prudent reasoning. 
If I carry this to my nest, thought he, it will fill it 
with vermin, and hardly be worth eating.” The 
voracity of this hawk may be imagined from the 
circumstance, also related by the great American 
ornithologist, that in the stomach of one of these 
birds, he found the greater part of the body of an 
American robin (Turdus migratorious), “includ¬ 
ing the unbroken feet and claws ; though the 
robin actually measures within half an inch as 
long as the sparrow-hawk.” 
The blue jay (Garrulus cristatus), a very com¬ 
mon bird throughout the United States, is one of 
the greatest enemies of the sparrow-hawk—at 
least as far as most vociferous attacks of the 
tongue may be regarded as signs ofenmity. Like 
all his congeners, he has the greatest facility in 
imitating sounds ; and when disposed for a little 
quiet fun, can mimic the notes of other birds with 
such exactness as to deceive the most piacticed 
car. He appears to be particularly fond of teas¬ 
ing the sparrow-hawk with his garrulous non¬ 
sense, imitating his cry wherever he sees him, 
and squealing out as if caught; this soon brings 
a number of his own tribe around him, who all 
join in the frolic, darting about the hawk, and 
feigning the cries of a bird sorely wounded, and 
already under tire clutches of its devourer ; while 
c.'hers lie concealed in bushes, ready to second 
the attack. But this ludicrous farce often termi¬ 
nates tragically. The hawk, singling out one of 
the most insolent and provoking, sweeps upon 
him in an unguarded moment, and offers him up 
a sacrifice to his hunger and resentment. In an 
instant the tune is changed; all their buffoonry 
vanishes, and loud and incessant screams pro¬ 
claim their disaster.” 
A much smaller bird than the jay, however, is 
able singly to drive this depredator from his 
haunts, at least during the breeding season, when 
affection for his mate and voung prompts him to 
exert all his powers and dare every danger to 
save them from the destroyer. This is the 'king¬ 
bird or tyrant-flycatcher (Muscicapa tyrannus), a 
bird of passage in the United States, whose daunt¬ 
less courage makes even the eagle fly from his 
attacks. 
Tne rain which we shake from our feet may 
be metamorphosed into a mulberry leaf, and ulti¬ 
mately revisit them in the form of silk stockings. 
The religion that costs us nothing is worth ex¬ 
actly what it costs. 
Reason, like polished steel, must be kept bright 
by use, or it will rust. 
Self-denial is the most exalted pleasure. 
Scorn to do a mean action. 
Dogs of every kind, setters, pointers, bulls, 
Newfoundlands, mastiffs and terriers, are all lap 
dogs—when they are drinking. 
The rules commonly given in our fruit hooks 
and magazines for pruning the vine, both in Fall 
and Summer, will answer for all ordinary purpos¬ 
es. Whoever follows them faithfully, may expect 
to gather good crops of grapes. Yet, it sometimes 
happens that one wishes to cultivate a variety 
which does not quite perfectly ripen in his climate ; 
or he wishes to grow a few bunches of some 
sorts of superior size for exhibition. He can ac¬ 
complish both of these ends by girdling or ringing 
his vines. The fruit will matuie a fortnight earli¬ 
er under this prot^ss, and the berries will be 
enlarged to nearly double their ordinary size and 
weight. 
This practice was tried more than a century 
ago on fruit-trees in France, but it does not seem 
to have ever become general. Some American 
pomologists have also tried the experiment of 
ringing fruit-trees—apples and pears, especially 
—and with considerable success. In some cases 
their trees have been injured by the process, ow¬ 
ing, perhaps, to carelessness in making the in¬ 
cisions, or in doing the work so late in the sea¬ 
son that the wound could not heal over. It is on 
the vine, however, that the best effects of this 
practice have been witnessed. And these are so 
obvious and certain, that in man} - parts of Fran-te 
and England ringing has become a part of the set¬ 
tled culture of the vine. 
The method is as follows : Watch for the. litre 
when your grapes have become of the size of No. 
2 shot. Supposing that you prune upon the Hoare, 
or long-rod system, select those rods which con¬ 
tain some of the finest clusters, and with a prun- 
ing-knife having a smooth 
edge and a hawk’s bill, cut 
out a circular section of the 
bark, about half an inch wide, 
and remove it. Be sure and 
cut deep enough to reach the 
sap-wood all around the 
branch, and take away every 
particle of bark, inner and 
outer. If the operation h$s 
been thoroughly performed, a 
callus will form on the upper 
edge of the ring, and it will 
appear something like the an¬ 
nexed cut ; The sap of the 
vine is not checked at all in 
its upward circulation, but in 
its downward, and then contributes to the per¬ 
fection of the clusters above the girdle. If the 
ring is made in about the middle of a rod, one 
will easily see the difference between the clusters 
above and below’ it. 
Some may object to this practice on the ground 
of its being unnatural, and of its injury to the 
branches girdled. But we by no means recom¬ 
mend it for vines pruned on the Spur-system, nor 
would we advocate it as a general practice in a 
vinery, whatever may be the system of pruning. 
But for late bearing grapes, and those trained on 
the renewal system, it is entirely unobjectionable, 
because the rods so used are to be entirely re¬ 
moved in the Fall-pruning whether girdled or not. 
It is indeed often performed in France on spur- 
pruned vines, by making the ring just above the 
bud left for next year’s fruit branch. If the ring 
is made so small that it can heal over before Au¬ 
tumn, the bud so left will not be much injured, 
nor will the fruit above the ring be much improv¬ 
ed. This practice is not, on the whole, to be re¬ 
commended. But on vines trained upon the 
renewal method it is well worthy of adoption. 
And then, to girdling must be added thinning out 
the berries and bunches. 
“ This practice of girdling (says Fessenden) 
may he kept up from year to year, and give you a 
succession of ripe fruit from the first of Septem¬ 
ber to the close of the season. The fruit on 
those branches which are not girdled will ripen 
the latest, of course, hut neither these nor those 
which have been girdled should he shortened, as 
is customary on vines not thus treated. 
-- ---- 
Pruning Grape Vines. 
To the Editor of the Amervan Agriculturist 
Having made pretty extensive observations 
upon this subject for some years, I am fully per¬ 
suaded that grape vines ought not to be pruned 
later than October. When pruned during the 
Winter, more or less of the remaining vine will 
be killed. I have, on two occasions, lost a large 
quantity of vines which I attributed to Winter 
pruning. Prune in October, leaving a surplus of 
three or four inches next the vine which will pro¬ 
tect it from injury by freezing. 
But my principle object in writing, is to coirect 
the too prevalent idea that the vines should be 
very much thinned out, and shortened to six, 
eight or ten feet in length. 1 have, for several 
years past, permitted my vines to run off hori¬ 
zontally, up ihe sides of buildings or into trees, 
as was most convenient—to almost any extent. 
I prune my vines as I do my apple trees. Wher 
the limbs, or vines are too thick 1 remove but 
never shorten them. The great art in raising the 
grape consists in the proper management of the 
root. Where vines are permitted to stretch off 
in this way the bunches will be larger, of a finer 
flavor and ripen earlier the further they are re¬ 
moved from the root. By pursuing this course I 
find that a thirty feet vine, sustained by a good 
healthy root, produces more than three times as 
much fruit and of better quality, than a vine ten 
feet in length. I refer to the Isabella variety 
which I am cultivating. W. Watkins. 
Bradford Co., Pa. 
-—-- 
Best Market Grapes for Glass Inclosures. 
To the Editor o the American Agriculturist : 
I have been building a stone house, with the 
roof projecting two feet on the south-westerly 
side. Within and along that space, I desire to 
set such grape vines as will mature fruit, with a 
glass front to protect from frost and retain heat. 
I wish to plant such kinds as will give best re¬ 
turns in market, and ask your advice as to varie¬ 
ty. distance apart, and treatment. 
B. H. Dewing. 
North Chelsea, Mass. 
Remarks. —The Black Hamburg will probably 
thrive in such a situation, and is a fine market oi 
table grape, succeeding only under glass in your 
latitude. 
Plant six feet apart, along the length of tho 
building, and as there is but two feet of air in 
depth, proper attention must be given to ventila¬ 
tion, and shading with screens from the hot sun, 
or the vines will parch. Have the front so con¬ 
structed that the sashes can all be taken away 
during the heat of Summer, which will save no 
little care. Return the glass when frost is appre¬ 
hended, and the season will thus be lengthened 
sufficiently to mature the fruit. Were we to con¬ 
struct a cold grapery on this plan, we would have 
the roof project far enough to give three or four 
feet in depth instead of two feet. We repeat, 
great care will be necessary to ventilate every 
