26 
THE FLORIST. 
kept till March were scarcely to be distinguished from the same Grapes 
in December. The shading is removed with the sun, or it would 
injure in some measure the leaves, which I am anxious to keep green 
as long as possible, as I find the preservation of the Grapes depends a 
good deal on this ; and besides, green leaves in winter are valuable for 
dishing up the fruit. Slight fires only are made, principally to counter¬ 
act any dampness which may enter with the external air ; I trust 
chiefly to the free admission of air, and keeping it in motion, as the 
most effective means of preserving the Grapes from damp. The tem¬ 
perature ranges from 40° to 55°, and no plants, nor dampness of any 
kind is allowed to remain in the house. Wher§ Grapes are being kept 
in flat-roofed houses, shading to the extent named for steep ones will 
not be so necessary, but the same principles must be kept in view, as to 
excluding the sun as much as possible. 
When the ventilation of houses for retarding Grapes is not sufficient, 
it should by all means be increased, and, as has been observed above, 
should be arranged so as to be made use of in all weathers, and sufficient 
to allow for a perceptible current of air to pass through the house. 
This may generally be managed by having a series of ventilators in the 
back wall, nearly up to the roof, and corresponding ones in the front; 
as these will have to be open at all times, they should be protected by 
a fine wire netting, to prevent birds and vermin getting into the house. 
The houses I manage myself, for retarding Grapes, are either very 
flat or very steep, but 1 am of opinion that square houses, with low 
ridge and furrow roofs, would keep them better than either; this 
description of houses will come much more into use when once they are 
understood. For growing late Grapes, I would build a house of this 
kind 10 feet high in the sides, with the ridges running east and 
west (for an early house I would reverse this). When the Grapes are 
ripe the south face of each ridge should be shaded with canvas, leaving 
the north side to admit light (or at any rate I would so shade, when 
necessary ) ; if the house had glass sashes on three or four of its sides, 
6 feet high, resting on a 4-feet basement wall, abundant ventilation 
could be given when wanted. The floor of the house would of course 
be the border for the Vines, which might also extend beyond the 
external walls if wanted; a few pipes would keep it dry, or give the 
necessary assistance for ripening the Grapes, if Muscats; Hamburghs 
and St. Peters would require very little, excepting when in bloom. I 
know of no form of house which, for simplicity of construction and 
cheapness, could be compared with one of this description for growing a 
bulk of Grapes. 
But to return to my subject. The preparation for keeping must be 
attended to throughout their growth. One cause of failure (and this is 
particularly the case with Hamburgh and other close-growing Grapes), 
is the decay of the footstalks of the bunches and berries, and this will 
occur very frequently unless the bunches, when thinned, are well tied 
out and the berries left thin, so as to admit the air to pass freely through 
the bunch during its growth, to harden the footstalks, and enable them to 
keep fresh and healthy till the last. I find, as well, that keeping the leaves 
growing till late in the season has considerable influence in preserving 
