Nashville union and American. [volume] (Nashville, Tenn.) 1868-1875, 1869-12-11
FARM AND GARDEN.
Culture OF 1he Grape--Want OF In
formation.

formation.
Mr.. Z. F. Underhll, of Brocton,
n. Y, in an elaborate and use
full article on grape culture, in a
late number of the Journal Of Horti-
culture, in speaking of the near dis
tances mistakenly recommended for
planting vineyards, says: buchanan,
one of the earliest, and Mead, one of the
latest writers on grape culture, recon-
mend four by six as the extreme dis
tances; and | do not now recOllect any
textbook which suggests a distance
greater than six feet in either direction FOR
planting vineyards" If he win examine
the american FsWN CuliuriSf ne
viii find, in more Than one place,
a much greater distance recommend
ed; and for vigorous sorts, not less than
twenty-five feet on the trellis is named
the same distance a. that stated in the
article alluded 10, as giving "a result like
magic This distance was recommend
cd in the Fruit Culturist, in extreme cases,
for old rioe8, nearly twenty years ago,
and repeatedly since by the author on va
rious occasions, and cultyators are now
Just beginning to find IT out Near dis
tances may do for Young vines, hut not
old ones.
Mr. UndcrhiH also writes 10
the Jomacl Of Horticui'"rc that on
rich soils we plant too closely, that six
teen feet apart each way is the best dis
lance for rampant kinds, that severe
pruning is Irrational and absurd, and that
the aim and end Of all successful train
ing of the vines must be to keep,
and not 10 destroy, that equilibri-
um nature has established and
would maintain, between the parts of
plant which lie below, and those which
stand above The surface. He cites much
proof to establish his position, independ-
cntof that proofa clear statement always af-
fords lie shows that instead Of cutting
down 70 keep the vine within bounds, We
should make room for It by removing its
neighbor and giving il The way and
means TO grow and spread. lie also gives
several instances where large old vines,
which remained sterile in crowded and
narrow quarters, became at once more
fruitful and vigorous when given oppOr-
tunity to spread, branch and run. 4 cor
respondent Of the Country Gentleman
states that if he were to plant vines anew
for the purpose Of growing grapes to sell
or raising them TO be made into wine, h7
would choose good, rich, well drained
prairie corn land, plant the strong
growing kinds in rows north and south,
twenty-four feet apart in the row, and
eight feet apart in the row the other way.
He would train them on wire trellis,
with four or five wires evenly divided as
TO distance, the bottom wire being from
one 10 sixteen inches from the
ground, while the top one should DE no
higher than he could conveniently handle
the vine on. He would give no other cul-
ture than sufficient to keep the weeds and
grass down, and have no more than would
evenly distribute the canes over the wires;
or he would adopt the old system Of plant
inr close, and cutting and slashing, with
the expectation Of getting one or two good
crops of fruit before the plants were dead,
then rtplauDmg aud repeating the process
over
The editor of The PyocGcoj Farmer
gives this process for reiuyenating old
grape vines:
"IIaying CD our PREMISE, planted 10y
former owners, probably twenty years
ago, half dozen old grapevines, with
large weaihpr-bcalcn trunks OF stems,
which made annually but little wood and
welded but very few poor grapes, two
seasons ago we cut off the branches, and
aid the main stems down in trenches,
covering with about a foot of earth. Wig
0rous aud healthy shoots sprung up in
great abundance, the weak ones of which
were broken off, and leading ones, at pro,
per distances, trained to the arbOT. The
new Crowlhs are now clean, healthy and
atrong-suficicnt entirely to cover The
large arbDr the present season; we now
look for bushels Of fruit from the new
bearing wood We see old grapevine:
everywhere doing no good, and which
could be made young and thrifty Ty this
process.