Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1868-01-21

tot' Inns iAuicbiuS must De IOlIOW-
ed up each winter, during the life o.
the yard. | say "must be" because
everybody does it but | have con-
versed with several parties who pro.
TESS to believe that the vines viii
stand the winter successfully with
out mulehing.
The second season after planting
the vines yield their first full crop;
and, as they are vigorous climbers, a
sufficient number of poles should be
secured during the previous winter,
drawn to one side of the yard, and
well sharpened, ready for use when
required These poles should be
from IA to Is feet in length, and from
q TO 4 inches in diameter at the butt.
In trimming them, the knots should
not be shaved off too closely, or the
vines, when they become heavy, VII
slip down. In some localities, where
young timber suitable for poles can
not be obtained, sawed poles are
used, sawed to q taper, and nails
driven IN few feet apart, to support
the vines when they become heavy.
In the Spring, when the vines have
grown three or four inches high. and
before anything has been done in the
way o. cultivation, the work of set
ting the poles commences. For this
purpose, crowbar, with the lower
end made large, and Of about the
same size anu shape as the sharpen
ed end of the poles, is prepar>
ed. 1t is plunged into the ground
to the required depth, and worked
backward and forward until a hole
is made sufficiently large to receive
the pole Two poles are set to each
hill; some use three, but two appear
to be preferable, as three render the
yard too thick for free circulation
of air, and also require more vines
than the ground can profitably sup
port. They are set one foot away
from the centre Of the hill, so as not
to interfere with the bed roots; placed
from twelve to fourteen inches in the
ground, and their tops inclined away
from each other, so that the points
of the two poles will be about equi-
distant from each other and from the
tops OF the poles set in the adjoining
hill. La short time, the vines will
have grown to be eight or ten inches
high; and then commences the work
of tying up the vines A large mum
Der of vines will be found in each hill;
and selecting the hardest and stronge
est, two will be started up each pole.
For this purpose, they are loosely
wound once or twice around the pole,
care being taken to wind them in the
direction of the course of the sun, or
from left to right. They are then
loosely tied in their position. For
this purpose, pieces of wooden yarn,
raveled from an old stocking, are pre-
ferred to anything else. The kinks
and quirks in it give it sufficient
elasticity to keep the vine in its re-
CURED position without combining it
so arbitrarily to one place that it is
liable to be broken or injured from
its inability to yield to any sudden
pressure. The yarn is so weak, also
that it does not bind the vine as it
grows older and increases in size
On tying up the vines the first time,
all the remaining vines in the hill
(save one or two, which are reserved
to supply the places Of those which
may become broken by accident, J
are gathered togather, and after re-
ceiving good sharp twist, are bent
down and covered up with dirt, when
they soon die. These surplus vines
should never be cut off, as they bleed
profusely, and springing from COM
mon root, weaken the whole hill
The whole yard IS gone over occa-
sionally, to see that the tops Of none
Of the vines become thrown down or
lose the pole; and, when one is found
out of position, it is tied in its proper
place in the same manner When
the vines are well up the poles, the
remaining surplus vines in each hill,
which bad been reserved for use in
case of accident, are bent down and
covered up with dirt. When once
fairly started up the pole, the vine
cannot be easily thrown down; but
the wind frequently bends the tops
over away from the pole, and thus
checks the upward flow of the sap,
and places limit to the growth OF
the vine. 1t is good plan to 60
over the yard as often as once week,
to restore all such to their position.
The poles once set, the yard is
plowed once, and at intervals gone
over with the eultivator, two or three
times. in about the same manner as
corn, care being taken not to"hill up
the plants too much. The hoe should
also be used TO work close around
the vines. They should be kept clean
and free from weeds, as they draw
strongly on the soil, requiring for
their own proper development all the
virtue there is in it; but all cultiva>
ton should cease as soon as the vines
commence to bloom, which, il this
section, occurs about the last Of July
If weedy, they can be gone over again
after the hop is thoroughly set.
1t would not be proper to leave
this branch of the subject without
stating that some farmers, instead of
using the long poles to which have
alluded, use stakes eight or ten feet
long, connected a. the top with
strings running over the entire yard.
This is a patented system, belonging
to Mr.. IL. c. Collins, of Morris, OF
sego county, N. Y. AS Mr.. Collins
furnishes full directions to those US
ing his system, when they purchase
the right to do so, it is unnecessary
to describe it here. 1t has been used
to a great extent in all the hop dis>
tricts, and, although some profess to
prefer it, the great majority OF hop
growers unite in declaring that the
vines will not produce so heavily
when trained in this manner, as
when trained upon long poles. 1t
may be good thing, however, in To-
calities where suitable poles arc not