The daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1848-1851, 1849-03-12
Che Grape ~ Culture, &e.


/
ticularly if it promise to be productive one and
any facts relating to ii should be received as they
deserve, with all due attention. The culture of
the vine which forms so large part of the indus
! trial pursuits of the Old World, cannot be con-
sidered entirely new in our own country. Yet the
limited extent to which it has been carried, and
the failures which in many instances have attended
it, make it within the bounds of propriety to call it
new introduction. The climate of many Of our
States would seem to be singuarly adapted to the
| vine culture, and no fault can be found with the
soil, so that the failure of many experiments would
be unaccountable they not attributable to the
Ignorance of the expermenters. An attentive pc
rsal of the subiohed article and letter will serve
| TO throw much light upon the subject, and to re-
move whatever ignorance may still exist They
are written by gentleman thoroughly conversant
with the subject upon which he writes, and well
| capable of calculating it. We Recommend them
| particularly to the attention of our readers.
| Grape Culture and Wine-Making at Holly Wood
Eds. Crescent-In DeBow's Commercial Review
for September last published letter on the vine
culture at the South, and since that time have re-
celved weekly and almost daily inquiries for fur
Their Information on culture and soil, and my method
| of making wine from the Roanoke. To answer all
such inquiries individually, upon such lengthy sub
Jet, would be almost impossible therefore take the
liberty of using your columns for that purpose and
as much of this letter is continuation on the same
| subject as that in the Review, should feel much
| obliged if you would copy that letter into your
Weekly, and follow it up with this article for in
all probability, vast number of persons seeing this
will consider il incomplete, not having seen the
| other The wine growing business of the South
before long, will be of such vast importance that
keep from the public any Information likely to ex-
cite interest in its cause, will deserve the highest
censure. feel bound, therefore, to share what lit
tie knowledge have among those who wish it for
| giving does not lmpoverlsh, nor Withholding make
rlch | will now proceed to finish the article on
| culture-that being the business of the vigneron-
before commence wine making, or the business of
the winner. As the soil of my VINEYARDS is rather
of tenacious kind, and of course much injured by
working in wet weather. | defer the last spring
working until the buds begin to break or open ;
(Which happens here early in April with the Roa-
nOke, but much sooner with the other kinds y for
If the soil is worked too early, two-fod injury
most invariably follows: first, it creates stmll-
liant to the plants and excites the circulation of the
sap, and pushes the buds too forward into life,
thereby exposing them to the late spring frost and
In the second place, if worked early the hard rains
in March pack the earth very close, thereby greatly
retardlng the growth of the vines; whereas if the
work be left until AFTER the soil remains loose and
rlabe. so that the air and gh-so essential to the
existence of vegetation-are admitted more readily
to the roots, and prevent that sluggish growth
that otherwise must follow on renewing the soil
When the soil of the vineyard is found to be on the
decne-which is easily discovered by the fruit de-
generating in size and tenderness, and The growth
of the wood being much shorter from joint to Joint
and ass nming an ash gray, instead OF olive brown
colOr-where such signs make their appearance,
the vigneron may with safety apply some new soil,
taking care, however, to apply it with caution; for,
the vine, in the vegetable kingdom, is far more in
temperate than man. in the animal and it never fails
10 collect all the most gross and the very thiest ma
terals within its grasp to gorge itself with; and when
it so happens that such soil placed within REACH
| most prolific growth of wood and foliage follows
and sometimes a good show of fruit; but before
the latter natures, it rois and falls off. Seeing,
then, that the vine Is so Incorporate in its desires
and that it really is susceptible to every change
made In the soil, however trivial, much caution
at all times should be used when renewing takes
place. Rich manure should never be applied under
any circumstances, no matter however poor the land
may be. My plan is always to have by me good
supply of compost, of well pulveriZed and decom-
posed materials, and from one to two wheelbar-
| rowsul are scattered round each vine every year
in the fall, and well raked into the surface soil,
my vines being twenty feet apart) This plan keeps
up uniformity in the quality of the SOIL and is
much better than to apply large quantity at once
every two three years, which acts suddenly on
the vines; for, be it recoected although the vine
is one of the grosses feeders the soil, yet it is
absolutely Wnen kept proper
bounds, thriving in land so poor that it would
scarcely sustain life in other plants.
My compost is made in the following manner
Every fall after the field and garden crops are
brought in, have collected in large heap, three
feet high and six wide, all kinds of trash such as
corn stalks, potato vines, cabbage leaves and
stumps, chips from the woodward, sweepngs from
the house and poulry-yard, spent ashes and rotten
log and if not enough, fallen leaves from the
woods. When the pile is made up, it lies all the
fall, winter and spring. In the meanwhile q cask
is placed at some convenient distance near the
house, which receives from day to day all the
chamber I've, dsh-water, soap-suds and meat
bones. Once or twice a week this is carried and
thrown over the compost heap BY the following
spring the heap shrinks down to about foot high
Then throw on it a load sand (the coarser the
better,) for every three or four loads in the heap;
the pile is then turned and mixed well together
| and left until next fall, bur not allowed TO re-
celve any more Stops from the house-that being
carried to a new heap. During the second year
the compost heap Is turned over once or twice, at
least, and in the fall is fit for the vineyard for
renewng he soil aforesaid. The aspect or situa-
ton of the vineyard | think somewhat important
and that of an EASTERN or as near it as possible, |
prefer, from it we receive the rays of the sum-
so grateful 10 vegetation in its early dawn.
southern aspect SO much desired in colder climates
does not so well here, the heat of which is so intense
from twelve till four, that the skin of the fruit is
much hardened thereby, and the air vessels in the
leaves contracted, and of course their breathing
functions impaired for the time, and the leaves
in consequence are made to scken and to droop I'M
til the decline of the suns powers brings relief in
the dew of the night.
After having said much, and explained so little
on the work ofthe vigneron. will now proceed on
the work of the vinture. Wine-makng | consider
almost a mechanical art. To arrive at the arcana
OF which, however, it is necessary TO pursue
regular method in the process, and by doing so any
person of ordinary ability can acquire it. As my
desire is only to inform novices in the art, young
winters who will be content with simple rud-
ments unconnected with technical terms, shall
set down my plan in the painest possible manner;
for it is we'll known fact that thousands of writers
of the present day undertake to enlighten the un-
informed, and their manner in describing things
so hard to comprehend, that no one less informed
than themselves can understand one word Of the
subject on which they undertake to write. speak
from experience, as have by a number of
works on the subject am now writing of, and
scarcely one them consider worth reading, and
from the cause above stated. This fault arises, no
doubt from the fact that few practical men find
time 10 write, while fewer still who write give