April 2. 1904. 
THE GARDENING WORLD. 
27:1 
Vines and their Culture. 
I. Preliminary Remarks. 
In presenting these remarks to the reader, it is not my in¬ 
tention to assume the rdlei of teacher, nor to pretend to an over¬ 
whelming amount of experience; neither am I so bold as to 
undertake an. exhaustive and analytical 'disquisition on the 
extensive subject of Vine culture. I merely touch on the 
methods employed in the cultivation of ‘this noble fruit, and 
offer my opinions and observations on, improvements which I 
deem advisable. In tire words of Pope, I would “ convey the 
truest notions in the easiest way,” and, remembering the golden 
advice of the same poet, “ Launch not beyond your depth, 
but be discreet, and mark that point where sense and dulness 
meet,” I will refrain from expatiating on those branches with 
which my acquaintance is somewhat limited. 
Dispensing with any lengthy remarks by way of exordium, I 
would observe that the Grape Vine is essentially the most en¬ 
gaging, the most ancient, and the noblest subject with which 
the gardener has to deal, and if any one plant were to be 
chosen to indicate at once the charming 
character, the antiquity, and the 
dignity of a gardener’s occupation, I 
can conceive no more suitable or appro¬ 
priate candidate for that honour than 
the Grape Vine. No eulogies of mine 
are required, or, in fact, competent to. 
do adequate justice to this desirable 
fruit. It is a subject which exerts a 
peculiar fascination on its cultivators, 
and affords them, more than any other, 
pleasure from their labours. What 
the Rose is to the flower grower and 
the Potato to the man cf vegetables, 
the Grape Vine is in its relation to 
other fruits. 
Some may, perhaps, object to my 
placing the subject of my essay on so 
exalted a pedestal, but I am thoroughly 
of opinion that the consensus of 
opinion amongst gardeners will only 
serve to endorse my statement. En¬ 
joying as it does a place in the hor¬ 
ticultural programme which it is not 
likely to lose, it may be asserted, with¬ 
out derogating from the value of other 
fruits, that the plentiful production of 
handsome Grapes, possessing the three¬ 
fold and combined qualities of size, 
colour, and flavour, represents the 1 highest 
ment of the gardening art. 
The Vine is profusely spoken of in Scripture, and is some¬ 
times employed to elucidate the relationship between the Deity 
and man. The immortal poets Shakespeare and Milton make 
allusions to it in some of their finest lines. Few poets, if any, 
have ignored its claim and its easy adaptation to verse, and 
all who have touched on it have improved their productions 
thereby. Hence it may be regarded, if not in an evolutionary, 
yet in an historic sense, and as a cultivated fruit among the 
oldest and first to receive notice. My purpose, however, is 
to deal with the subject in a cultural and practical manner; 
therefore adieu to this sentimental digression. 
The primary consideration in dealing with the Grape Vine 
should be the construction of the houses in which the rods 
are to be grown, and to this point it will be well to devote 
a few words. There are obviously three distinct forms of 
structure used in this country, and designated by the terms 
span-roofed, leando, and hip-roofed or f-span, the latter being 
the result of a compromise between the others. ■ It would but 
display unpardonable ignorance of the multiplicity and charac¬ 
ter of the various factors, atmospheric and circumstantial, 
operating with beneficial or baneful influence on plant life, to 
single out either one of these forms a,s the ideal and commend¬ 
able shape for all purposes. Hence it may be asserted, without 
fear of contradiction, that each of the aforeunentioned may in 
the varying local and climatic conditions be most advisable. 
The lean-to is probably the oldest form, and is often put up 
with a view to economy, in that it can he perched against an 
existing wall, the only expense in such a case being the three 
outer walls and the roof. If these structures are made to 
face the south, are air-tight, and provided with ample and suit¬ 
able ventilation, little or nothing can be said against them. 
It is quite as essential, if not more so, than in the case of 
Orchids and Carnations, that the Grape has the monopoly 
of .a house, for it is impossible toi do them well in point of 
size, colour, and flavour in a house where they occupy a. 
position secondary and subsidiary in. the matter of ventilation 
and general attention to' a. large stock cf miscellaneous plants, 
whose requirements are diametrically opposed to orthodox 
Vine treatment. It may appear a. waste of valuable space to 
allow Vines to monopolise the house to the entire exclusion of 
all other plants, but it is a policy (though in many cases diffi¬ 
cult of achievement) possessing tire merit of being dictated 
by common sense and strengthened by experience. 
At one place with which I was acquainted the vinery wa.s 
Copyrighted by Messrs. J. Carter & Co. 
Bed of Carters’ Cluster Polyanthus Primroses. (Seep. 276.) 
and noblest attain- used also as a plantrirouse throughout the year; in fact, it 
would have been difficult for a stranger to correctly determine 
whether Vines or plants claimed most attention, which were, in 
a word, the feature of the' house. On one occasion, the owner 
was heard to remark to a friend whom he was taking round to 
view his horticultural possessions that his gardener was an 
excellent plant grower, was very successful with hardy fruits 
and flowers, whilst for vegetable culture he had few equals, but 
his weak point was Vines, which lie could never get to finish 
well and keep in. a first-class manner. The reply of the visitor 
did him great credit, inasmuch as he strongly urged that it was 
impossible to grow both Grapes and plants to perfection in the 
same house', a view which, coming from that source, set up 
in the owner’s mind a series of thoughts which he probably 
never previously entertained, and eventually, after an inter¬ 
change of opinions, he confessed that there was logic in the 
view, and that excellency of culture could not be reasonably 
expected from any gardener when Grapes and plants divided 
the supremacy between them. Even if it is necessary to have 
some plants in the house in thei growing season, and Chrysan¬ 
themums when the Grapes are cut, yet it should always he con¬ 
trived to keep 1 a house containing ripe and ripening Grapes free 
from plants, and those which are admitted under other cir¬ 
cumstance® should be made to adapt themselves as best they 
can to the treatment afforded the Vines. W. R. 
