1868. 
GRAPE CULTURE. 
267 
of judgment which, every gardener, whether amateur or professional, should 
possess previous to undertaking the management of a vinery. The con¬ 
tinuation of the growth on the leading shoots of the Vine, so as to draw on 
the sap should not be too much interfered with, but should be allowed as 
far as space will permit, so as to secure a good development of the roots. 
Thinning the Grapes is the next process, and should commence as soon 
as the berries approach the size of small peas. One good thinning is 
sufficient. It is simply absurd to allow a number of small berries to # 
remain on the bunches until they are half grown, as they draw their 
resources from the Vines to no useful purpose, which resources should be 
economised for the berries which are intended to form the bunches. Thin¬ 
ning is an operation best left in the hands of energetically-minded assistants, 
who have predetermined to have ten good berries where forty or fifty have 
formed and would be produced to the detriment of the whole, if the 
liberality of bountiful Nature were allowed to continue its course. Swelling 
the Grapes is a process which common sense (that uncommon thing), 
suggests must be the result of good feeding and moisture ; but as these- 
elements are already provided for by the instructions relative to the forma¬ 
tion of the border, the ventilation and the syringing, I need say little more- 
respecting it than recommend the reader to follow those instructions. 
To be forewarned is to be forearmed; and ventilation being such an 
essential element to the proper colouring of Grapes, growers provided with 
the necessary means already alluded to, will do well to take advantage of 
them to produce the desired effect. Eed spider, which is the greatest pest 
of our vineries, may, and must in extreme cases, be thwarted in its destruc¬ 
tiveness by the free application of sulphur vivum reduced with lime to the sub¬ 
stance of thin paste (laying it on with a painter’s brush), on the surface of the 
hot-water pipes or brick flues. As excess of stimulant destroys the mental as- 
well as physical activity of the operator: so will sulphur vivum have the 
* 
same effect on the insect pest—and the Vines also, if proper care and 
attention is not devoted to its application. It is the true and perfect 
antidote, but its use must be combined with a sufficient amount of moisture, 
so as to guard against burning the foliage by a too dry atmosphere. 
When Grapes have reached the stage of colouring, this process, with the 
continued swelling goes on very rapidly, and it often happens that the 
Grapes are fit for gathering within twei^-one days of the period when they 
commence taking colour. An additional fortnight with abundant air 
completes the ripening, and induces the sweetening which renders them so 
much more acceptable to the palate. This latter question is more a con¬ 
sideration for the consumer than the grower, whose object is to produce a 
fine-looking article which will bear carriage to a good market, and there fetch 
a good price. The Vines having produced their crop of Grapes should not 
