Daily State sentinel. [volume] (Indianapolis, Ind.) 1861-1865, 1864-01-12

i ~.
! cinnati. Ohio. and hope all interested in grape
culture in Indiana viii give il careful perusal.
Ii will be found to be very concise and accu-
rate guide to those about TO embark in grape
culture. a well as TO those who are now cultiva-
ting the vine
d. b. Pierson, President Of the Cincinnati Horti-
cultural Society:
In accordance with en- order and custom of our
I Society, / proceed 10 render some account of
| what have met with of interest while absent on
a horticultural excursion.
Having recently enjoyed an opportunity of in
specting the extensive plantations of Rev. j.
Knox and others, in the vicinity of Pittsburg,
PENNSYLVANIA. proceed to give YOU some ac-
count of his admirable management, and of his
wonderful success. The experiments of Mr.
Knox have demonstrated that he has an excel
lent soil and situation for fruits especially for
grapes and strawberries, and also that he has
known how TO take advantage of his favorable
surroundings so as to bring about the most ad-
mirable results
The situation is upon the high rolling land
south of the Monongahela river, above which it
is elevated between four and five hundred feet.
/ The slopes incline variously but those looking
10 the south and west arc chiefly selected for
grape planting The soil is clayey loan, with
/ a liberal intermixture Of sandstone but also has
+ lime enough TO impregnate the percolating water.
| In some places the fissile sandstone constitutes
larger proportion of the soil. This is particu-
larlv the case on Troy Hill, Reserve Township,
north of Alleghany City, where there are numer-
Gus VINEYARDS covering nearly one hundred acres
some of which are very precipious, hanging
upon the southern and eastern declivitv, sup
ported by massive walls of sandstone, built at
/ great expense.
In other places, the tenacious light cOlored
clavev subsoil of this region approaches the
surface and intermingling with the soil, makes
strong clav. In such situations understanding
/ is very desirable.
| PREPARATIoN.-The plow, followed by the
subSoil litter, has been found by Mr.. Knox TO be
all sufficient for comminutiug this soil. With "A
strong pair of horses 70 the plow, followed bv
two pairs of oxen to the litter, he is able to work
/ about third of an acre per diem. This pro-
/ cess is performed in the autumn The ground
is next cross-plowed with the same implements,
going deeper, and third plowing is done in the
spring before planting, so that the soil is
thoroughly prepared, being stirred to a depth
of from fifteen TO eighteen inches.
The vines are of one summers growth from
single eyes, that are started in MIR. Knoxs ex-
tensive propagating houses in the spring, and set
out in well prepared soil about the first of June,
for the summers growth in the open air, which
gives them very fine roots and substantial stocky
I
with their abundant fbers, and are planted in the
vineyard ground, with their roots carefully
/ spread out in every direction Sometimes por-
ton planted in their stations, from the pots
directly from the propagating house, instead of
/ spending a summer in the nursery but such
not considered To be so good, though season is
gained by this plan.
! The distance between the vines is six feet in
rows that eight feet apart; this is for trelis
training upon the renewal system. A small
stake is set by each plant, to which the shoots
are tied Instead of cutting the little vines back
to two ewes, only the feeble wood at the ends is
cut off, leaving several budson the larger plants,
and as these grow, the weaker are rubbed out
and only the strongest sdlo<Sed TO remain. The
reason for this is obvious-st is 10 insure against
accidental injury to the prominent buds in hand
| ling plants During the summer the shoots are
tied to the stakes, and the next spring they are
cut back TO two eyes TO force out two strong
canes, which are tied up and trimmed of their
! lattcrais for three or four feet In strong vines
a third cane is sometimes allowed to grow the
second season, the object of which will appear
presently.
Training on the trelis commences with the
third season of the vineyard, when the stakes are
dispensed with Posts planted in the rows
that run north and south, about sixteen feet
apart to these, strips of boards, three or four
inches wide, are nailed, foot from the ground
and seven feet above it, these are the rails TO
which the upright strips, about an inch square
and eight feet long, nailed. These are placed
nine inches apart, from center 10 center. The
vines are trimmed this spring so as to form the
two arms. each three feet long, from which the
fuiting canes are TO be produced. In very
strong vine. that had been allowed to produce
three canes the previous summer. the third shoot
is trimmed TO three or four feet for fruting and
tied upright TO the trellis BAR nearest TO the vine
stock while the arms are secured to the lower
part of the trells. AS the bud, on these last
break, they are thinned out By rubbing off a por-
ton, that only the strongest are left and these
are 50 arranged that one of them can be trained
to each Ofthe upright trelis bars, or one to every
nine inches, that is. four canes each arm, eight
10 each vine. This should think n tremen-
dOus amount of wood for the 'hird summer, but
with the soil and treatment 10 which thev are
subjected, MANY of the varieties of grapes re-
quire assiduOus labor 70 coLine them TO this
number of shoots, which reach the top of the
trelliS, and most of the canes also bear a good
. deal of fruit. NJ. Knox feels confident that his
Concord vines will average ten lbs. of grapes
the third season. Some Other varieties such as
the TAYLOR or Built and Herbemont, grow as
vigorously. reaching the top of the trellis and
then stretching along horizontally for some dis
tance; but some kinds do not cover the trellis
the first year it is set up. These canes, pro-
duced from the arms arc divested of their laterals
during the summer.
The reHe,cdi system of trimming is adopted in
? these trellises, with some notifications, BY
adopting the spur-pruning when necessary as
will be indicated below. In the fourth season
from planting and always aftTxard, every alter
nate cane is cut back to two ewes, while the
other is shortened, according to its strength and
tied vertically to the trellis for fruitng the spun
produces anew cane, so that one spur supports fru
, and the other produces wood If it happened
that the cane of last year was not strong enough
for the fruiting, it is cut back, and that which
bore the previous year has its frIit bearing lat
erals trimmed to spurs for fruitirg, in its stead
I'm this way, BY judicious management, the whole
trellis is kept covered with fruit from year tC
year, and the amount produced s really aston
ishing, as an instance, | may cite twelve Hart
ford Prolific vines, which are fou- or five year.
: old, that produced $40 lbs. of frlit this year
from which Sl25 was realized-apoly this to al
acre, which supports about 900 vnes as plant
ed six feet by eight, and we may calculate th'
proportionate yield at fifty THOUSAND lbs. of fruit
this, nj the low price of five cents a pound
would produce 50 500 per acre an incredible
yield, and one justifying a large annual outls,
in assiduous care and labor.
The STRAWBERRY BEDS.
After setting the grapes in their sations in th
vineyard Mr. Knox plants the feet spaces wit
three rows of Strawberries eighteen inches apart
> the plants being separated from ten 10 twelv
inches; the whole surface is kept perfectly clear