1874. ] 
VINES AND VINE-OULTUEE. — CHAPTER IV. 
27 
them a good watering, and place tliem in a cold frame. Should the weather be 
hot and sunny, they should be shaded for a few hours in the middle of the day, 
but otherwise they will not require much shading. They should bo kept rather 
moist, and in a short time they will be nice little plants. They should have two 
or three shifts into larger-sized pots during the winter and spring. Each time 
they are shifted they will require more space. They should have abundance of 
air in mild weather, but should bo kept closed in frosty weather. Beyond this 
they will not require much attention, except being kept well watered during the 
spring, and in the early part of summer they will be objects of great beauty,— 
M. Saul, Stourton. 
VINES AND VINE-CULTUEE.— Chapter IV. 
Pruning and Training. 
’HE Grape Vine is a very free-growing, long-lived plant. When young and 
vigorous, it grows very rapidly, the growths of a single season often attain¬ 
ing a length of from 30 ft. to 40 ft., or more. In its natural state the 
plant is of a climbing character, sustaining itself by its tendrils, so in its 
cultivated condition it has to be supported. It requires always, in fact, a certain 
amount of training, that is, the fastening-up of the shoots in some particular way, 
and the pruning of them to prevent excessive and confused extension. 
There are various methods adopted in training the Vine, as being adapted for 
some particular place or purpose. Wo have, in the first place, that adopted in 
vineyards or vine-growing countries in the open air, where the young or fruit¬ 
bearing shoots are tied to upright poles, some 6 ft. or 8 ft. in length ; this is 
scarcely within our province to enter upon at the present time. In the next 
place, we have that adopted and adapted for Vines against walls, either in the 
open air or under glass ; and lastly, we have that against trellises under glass. 
In the training of Vines against walls, in the open air chiefly, it has generally 
been the habit to introduce a more fanciful form than when the Vines are grown 
against trellis-work. . There can be no particular reason for this, because the 
mode adapted for the one case must be equally so for the other. 
In a broad sense, we have only two modes in practice, in the training and 
pruning of the Vine, viz., 1, the Long-rod system; 2, the Spur system. Each 
of these modes is subject to all sorts of modifications, as fancy may dictate, or 
circumstances allow; but before proceeding fully with their explanation, it is 
necessary to say a word or two on pruning generally, apart from training. To 
prune is to cut off, or otherwise sever, a shoot or branch of a tree. Now, wo 
prune our Vines for various reasons, as follows 
Firstly, we prune for the purpose of attaining greater vigour in the plant. 
By cutting off a portion of a shoot or branch, the forces that would have been 
diffused over the whole are thereby concentrated on the part that is left, and 
hence we get a stronger growth. 
Secondly, we prune for the purpose of training or securing some desired form. 
D 2 
