386 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, September 25, 1860. 
to suit other subscribers who do not possess early volumes, I will 
merely allude to the prominent points to be attended to, although, 
for anything I lniow to the contrary, I may pretty well be only 
repeating myself. 
Por Vines to be forced early, I would insert the eyes in 
January. For Vines to fruit in summer and autumn, the buds 
may be inserted from January to March. As soon as the Vines 
are pruned in autumn or the beginning of winter, the young 
shoots from which the buds are to be taken should be placed in 
sand or earth in a cool place, so that they shall neither be excited j 
nor deprived of their juices. There are many ways of making ; 
the cuttings w ith a bud in their centre. The mode I prefer, is to ! 
cut the shoot right across, about three-quarters of an inch from 
the bud each way, so as to leave the cutting from one inch and a 
half to two inches long. The side of the cutting opposite the 
bud has then a thin lilm of wood and bark removed for the 
whole length. This and the two cut ends expose a considerable 
space of inner bark, or liber, to swell and protrude roots. So 
much for the cutting. 
The modes of setting these growing are also endless. To get 
strong plants early, no checks should be permitted. When I used, 
therefore, to grow Vines in pots, I put a cutting into the smallest- 
sized 60-pot—the smallest above what are called thumbs ; a little i 
drainage was placed in the bottom; the pot was filled within 
an inch of the top with sandy loam and a little leaf mould; on this j 
the cutting was placed firmly, the cut side downwards, and then 
covered for half an inch with sandy loam firmly pressed together. 
The cuttings thus made and planted were kept in-doois for a few 
days, and were then removed to a house furnished with a hotbed 
in which the pots could be plunged. 
When only a few cuttings were thus raised, the mode of 
plunging them was a matter of little moment. But when I grew 
a good number at a time, I used to fill a twelve or eighteen-inch 
pot, or a basket similar in size, with tan or other heating medium, 
and in that pot or basket I plunged the little pots up to their 
rim as thick as they could get standing room, and then plunged 
the big pot or basket. The reasons for this mode were chiefly a 
greater uniformity of temperature, and the ease with which the 
temperature could be reduced by lifting the big pot out of the 
bed a little, and also the ease with which the bed could have the 
heat removed, stirred up afresh, &c., as the one pot or basket was I 
easier moved than a number of small ones ; and, standing in their 
plunging medium, when moved the small ones were less liable 
to sudden checks than naked small pots would be wherever they 
might be placed. To save repetition, I may remark the same 
plan of plunging was resorted to until the plants came to occupy 
five-inch pots and onwards. 
I used to commence with a bottom heat of 65°, and a top heat 
of 50°, gradually increasing until the bottom heat reached 80°, 
and the top heat 65° at night, and from 70° to 80° during the 
day with sunlight. Until the young shoots get an inch or two in 
length, air will be of little consequence. Afterwards, the young 
plants must have fresh air as well as their older brethren. 
A new beginner may be surprised how, and especially in such 
circumstances, the roots grew so much faster than the young 
shoot from the bud. Success will depend so far on noting this, 
as though the shoot may be very small. As soon as the little 
pot is filled with roots it must at once be transferred to a larger 
one—say four inches in diameter, using similar soil, well aerated 
and warmed, and plunging the pot again in the hotbed. After 
this the plants must not have their young leaves more than 
fifteen inches from the glass. The water used should not be 
lower than from 75° to 80°. After the next shifting manure 
waterings may be given; if given before, they should be weak 
indeed. Under such circumstances, if a sweet nice heat is kept 
up at the roots, the plant will soon want transferring to a six or 
seven-inch pot, even though the stem is as yet comparatively 
small. Go on repotting and plunging the pot in the hotbed 
until the last shifting into a twelve, fifteen, or eighteen-inch pot. 
The first will be sufficient for a small productive plant that you 
can also give a hotbed to when fruiting. The second and third 
will be necessary where that cannot be given so much; though 
in all cases a mild hotbed the second season, when in the first 
stages of growth, will be a great advantage. The last shift for 
early forcing should be given about the beginning of July, and 
the pots should remain in the bed until the beginning of Sep¬ 
tember. They should then stand on the top of the bed for a few 
days, and then pots and plants be taken out of doors in front of 
a south to thoroughly harden and perfect the wood, placing a 
slate over the pot to keep off rains, and giving no more water | 
than will just keep the leaves from flagging. Of course, if the 
plants could receive similar roasting treatment in a house, they 
would do as well there as out of doors. The great things are 
first to obtain early and strong growth ; and the second thing is 
to ripen that growth before giving the plants a rest previously to 
exciting them into growth and fruit. 
Before the plants have come this length the training and 
summer pruning will have required some care. I adopted two 
plans, and both were equally good according to the purpose 
intended. 
1st. Por dwarf plants. In this case, as soon as the youn 
shoot was from twenty-four to thirty inches in length, the poin 
was nipped out. This caused laterals to come right from the 
bottom of the shoot. These were stopped and kept stopped at 
the second joint, and by June and July were stopped back to the 
first joint in the lateral. One or two of the upper buds on the 
stopped shoot would push also, and one of these would be selected 
for a fresh leader; and this would be stopped again when 
eighteen inches long and the process repeated again. By this 
means all the strongest and plumpest buds would be nearest the 
base of the shoot, and the cane altogether might be left no longer 
than it was at the first and second stopping. The laterals 
increase the strength of the stem. I have mentioned above the 
gradual lessening the size of the laterals. In autumn they 
must be gradually removed altogether, and nothing left at the 
joints but the one principal leaf. The great object, then, is to 
mature the growth already made instead of increasing that 
growth. 
By the other mode I preferred the shoots to be from six to ten 
feet in length, and did not stop them until they were that length, 
allowing the laterals, however, to grow in the first stages of 
growth; but the stopping being prolonged, the lower laterals 
would be weak in consequence—but that was a matter of little 
moment. As, however, the stem was fruited round a trellis or 
otherwise, little was expected from the first foot or eighteen 
inches of its length, and the bunches were chiefly procured on 
shoots from prominent buds near the middle and upper end of 
the shoot. Sometimes I have disbudded such long shoots severely 
before forcing; and at other times removed the young shoots 
after as many were selected as the Vine could mature. Prom 
five to ten good bunches may be considered good work for a pot, 
though Muscadines and some of that kind will perfect at times 
considerably more. In this case, as well as the last, laterals are 
encouraged until autumn, and then removed in order that 
maturing may supersede growing. 
When the Vines are thus ripened, and the leaves turn yellow 
and fall, the pots may be removed to a back shed, or any place 
out of doors. Provided the roots are covered so as to be free 
from frost, the cooler the stems are kept the better. If out of 
doors in the end of September and October, those intended to be 
started in November and December would be better laid down 
after the leaves were gone, and covered with damp mats or litter 
to keep them cool. 
I shall now speak of early ones started in November or Decem¬ 
ber. Nothing must be done to the pots except removing a little 
of the surface soil, and supplying with fresh compost. We are 
supposing the drainage is all right, and that worms have been 
excluded. The pruning having been chiefly done in autumn, little 
will now be required. The disbudding we would leave as a matter 
of discretion. Beginners will prefer thinning the shoots after 
they show fruit. N othing is so good as a mild hotbed of tan or 
tree leaves for starting them in. Begin with a bottom heat of 55° 
and top heat of 45°, rising gradually in a fortnight to 65° bottom 
heat, and 55° top heat, never going beyond 60° top heat until 
all the buds are fairly broken. Keep the stems moderately 
moist with the syringe. There is none of that difficulty that 
“ A. Z.” supposes, in breaking every bud of a long rod if deemed 
desirable. Nothing is better for that purpose than allowing the 
stems to recline loosely on the surface of the hotbed. Where 
that is not convenient, the rod should be twisted round three or 
four sticks, and the top of the Vine kept lowest. When fairly 
broken more water will be wanted at the roots, and the bottom 
heat may range from 70° to 83°, the top heat ranging from 60° 
to 65° with artificial heat, and from 70° to 85° with sun heat. 
Muscats and Prontignans may have a few degrees more of fire 
heat when in bloom; and at that time we like a medium atmo¬ 
sphere, neither very moist nor very dry. The longer the pots are 
allowed to remain in the bed the better will the plants like it. It 
indispensable to remove them to another house, the fruit ought t 
least to be fully set, and would be better if the berries had co> 
