Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1858-12-18

GRAPE CULTURE. -There is a little island in
the Hudson, the proprietor of which, DIR. Grant,
is one Of the most successful cutivators of the
grape in this country. He gives his principal
attention to the improved varieties of the
American vine, which are now becoming con-
siderably numerous, a, and the fruit of some of
which vies with that of the European kinds
The Rural New Yorker gives the following
account of a visit to DR.. Grants island:
Iona lsLAND.-In the Hudson river, near its
western bank, and mile or so above Peeks-
KILL is little island containing more than a
hundred acres, though portion of it is so
rocky rs to be unfit for cultivation. This is
called 2saa Island, and on it, solitary and alone
monarch of all he surveys" lives one well
known 70 the horticultural world Dr. c. W.
Grant. We had long desired to visit this
island and its proprietor, and on our return
from the Pathological meeting in New York,
We stopped at Peekskill, where we found the
Doctor awaiting our arrival, with fine boat;
and after pleasant ride Of mile or two on
the bUsom of the beautiful Hudson, we landed
at Iona, ready to examine the new grapes
which, from the specimens sent to all our hor-
ticultural exhibitions, we knew the Doctor
grew in perfection. STILL we were not pre-
pared for such a glorious exhibition; all the
new grapes that we had seen before only on
the tables at shows, here we beheld, under far
opinion as to their value and productiveness
Here we found the Delaware, not in single
clusters, but by bushels and the berries and
punches of much larger size than we had
supposed this variety could be made to attain
Instead of the slender growth of wood. we
had usually seen young plants make, here we
beheld canes of the present seasons growth,
sixteen feet long and half an inch in diameter,
and these not single branches but dozen or
Tll 0r from he. n
years planted, we counted seventy clusters
The Diana, too, on this Island, was exceed
lngly line in every way, and we made up our
minds that we had never before seen this grape
IN Its highest perfection. We measured canes
twenty-three feet long and an inch in diameter
The Rebecca is a rather slender grower, but
we measured canes half an inch in diameter
and eighteen feet long. The young vines were
fine, and to-day we have opened box sent us
by the Doctor, and found it to contain a young
Delaware vine, with a basketful of tibrous roots,
some of then three feet long-
The Diana and Delaware have been improv-
ing for several years, growing better and larger
each year. The stock or constitution, the
Doctor argues, has been injured by excessive
propagation, from which the vines are gradual
ly recovering. On this point we give an ex-
tract from his catalogue:
Zone of the evils to which new and desirable
varieties of plants of all kinds are subjected, is
excessive propagation, either by talSrr as
many layers as the vine can he made to pro-
duce, or by using all the wood that can be
made 10 grow, in which cases the vines will al
ways be imperfect or worthless and conse-
quently the reputation Of the variety damaged
or destroyed. OF this, the Diana has been
marked example, and those who have expe-
rienced its feeble growth, unproductiveness,
and small punches from dwarfed specimens first
sent out, behold with incredulous surprise the
exceedingly vigorous growth, which is but its
normal development, and such magnificent
punches of fruit as have, this season, been
eagerly taken by purchasers from the side of
the Black Hamburgs at the same price, but
with decided preference for the Diana
One Of our best new varieties is now lam
gushing in reputation in consequence of sub
lection to this very evil and the Delaware has
suffered from it most Of all. But the inherent
vital energy peculiar TO that variety enables it
best of all to overcome the injury, when again
placed in favorable circumstances if the dam
age has not been SO severe as utterly to destroy
its constitution"