388 WISCONSIN STATE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY . 
no portion of the vine has advantage over another, the flow of 
sap being equal to all parts; the air and wind have free access, 
thus rapidly freeing the foliage from moisture, and in checking 
growth, or if disease or insects attack the vine, every part, shoot, 
lateral, leaf and fruit can be readily seen and separately exam¬ 
ined. On the horizontal arm the fruit grows in its proper posi¬ 
tion ; the largest clusters nearest the base of the shoots. Fre¬ 
quently the lowest will be double shouldered, the next shoul¬ 
dered, while the upper will be a simple cluster. 
Again, with low training, the fruit receives a greater amount of 
heat than when growing high on the trellis, as it gets not only the 
direct rays of the sun, but also the heat reflected from the earth. 
In our northern climate this is a most important point. 
Should the spurs ever become as long as to be inconvenient, 
new arms may readily be formed by growing one shoot only from 
each of the center spurs. These should be stopped at about five 
feet, and not allowed to bear fruit, while the remainder of the vine 
will produce the usual crop. At the next fall pruning, cut away 
the old arms, prune the two canes to the desired length, and bend 
them down to form the new arms. But if proper pruning has 
been given, the arms will not require to be renewed oftener than 
once in fifteen years. 
Thus we find the vine the most plastic of all the fruit bearing 
plants. If left to itself it often climbs the lofty tree and bears its 
fruit far beyond our reach, but controlled and directed by the will 
and hand, it bears its most delicious fruit within reach of the child. 
A good and cheap trellis for this system is made of light posts, 
bars two inches wide, sawed from fence boards, and common lath. 
The lower bar is placed about a foot from the ground ; the upper 
the length of the lath above it. To these nail the lath, nine inches 
from center to center, and you have a cheap trellis, good enough 
for the garden. A coat of whitewash is an improvement, but 
without, the vine will soon cover the trellis, and it will only be 
seen in winter, when the grape garden or vineyard, at its best, is 
seldom ornamental. 
VARIETIES. 
On the subject of varieties everyone who writes or speaks of 
grape growing, is expected to have an opinion and list in readi- 
