The Opelousas journal. [volume] (Opelousas, La.) 1868-1878, 1873-08-15
Grapes and Grape Lands.
VAST YIN AND FRUIT REGIONS IN LOU
IsIANA AND MISSISSIPPI.

son Railroad. He planted the first Con-
cord vine in 1860. Some of his grapes
brought in the New Orleans market a
dollar and fifty cents a pound. The
same kind of grapes has this year re-
tailed at ten cents a pound. Money can
be made in selling them at five cents
and less. In 1869 Mr.. Manaad sold half
an acre of grapes from vines three years
old for four hundred dollars. The
average price was fifty cents a pound
that season.
COST OF VINEYARDS PER ACRE.
The Manard family, Mcdaniel Ma
nard and his two sons, have had val
liable experience in grape culture, and
from them we obtain the principal facts
contained in this article.
Concord grape vines should be set
about eight feet apart in the row, and
the rows about six feet apart, o rabOut a
thousand vines to the acre. Some plant
but seven hundred 0nd fifty to the acre.
It requires about five hundred posts
to the acre. These cost five cents a
piece, or $25 to the acre. Wire for trel-
Uses about $50. The vines cost
about $50 d thousand, and as low as
will yield from two to two and a half
pounds Of grapes. The fourth year,
from five to ten pounds to the vine if
properly cultivated and managed.
VARIETIES OF GRAPES CULTIVATED.
More than twenty varieties of grapes
are cultivated near the jackson Rail
road. The following are considered
the best: The Concord, a good table
and wine grape, is sWeeter and better
i'll this than i'll higher attitudes. The
~,rD,A 1-, - Ir,,+ -, 1,o1 -
and nearly n hundred grapes in the
largest clusters; Ives's seeding, large,
fine, black grape, ripens two weeks
sooner than the Concord, q good table
and wine grape, yields, according
to Mr.. HerWig's experiments, made
at his place ear ArcOla, twice as
much brandy as the Concord. 1t is a
good bearer.
CataWba, lilac cOlOred brown, a good
grape but nOtas good as in higher lati-
tUdes.
Tennessee, light amber, not as large
as the Concord, or quite us good, but
firm, beautiful, and will bear shipping
better than any of the other grapes. 1t
is thought that it would bear shipping
to Europe.
Diana, pale red, small compact clus-
tiers, sweet, and excellent table grape.
Delaware, pale red, a good grape.
Warren, large clusters, much smaller
berries than the Concord, pleasant acid,
a superior wine and table grape, ripens
the latter part of July.
Hartford prolific, black, smaller than
the Concord, sweet, a good table grape,
but not suited to low ATTITUDES.
Rogers grapes-Several kinds of
the Rogers grapes, No. IA, Is, Is and 10
are cultivated by the Manards.
Most of them are large, black, excellent
grapes. One kind is larger than the Con-
cord.
These are the best of over twenty
varieties of grapes cultivated in the
vineyards Of the Jackson Railroad.
It usually takes up about thirteen
pounds of grapes to a gallon of wine,
according to the experiments of the Ma
nard family. The largest yield of Con-
cord grapes should produce over seven
hundred gallons Of wine to the acre,
ten pounds of grapes to the vine and a
thousand vines.
CULTIVATION.
The expense of cultivating a vineyard
is small. The pruning, tying up the
vines, thinning out an excess of young
clusters, keeping the ground clear OF
HNSNS III SLASOy VAL bC pl1S1tO
without hard labor, and without pres
sure as to time. With wire trellises
and posts seasoned and the bottoms
dipped into hot coal tar, hardly any re-
pairs will be needed for twenty years.
CRATES, BOXES, AND FREIGHTs.
The crates and boxes. for twenty-foul
pounds cost thirty-fOur cents. The
freight to New Orleans is usually about
ten cents a crate, and to Louisville, bJ
express, fifty cents. The jackson Rail.
road Company has put the freights very
low, to encourage the establishing O.
vineyards In this section of country.
AREA OF LOUISIANA GRAPE LANDS.
Thus far all experiments in the cul.
tivatiOn of the Concord, ScupDernOng
and several other kinds Of grapes, OF
the pine lands of this State, Mississippi
and Alabama, have been successful
The vine and the grape are healthy
and the yield profile. There are owe
six million acres Of these lands in Lou
isiana alone, and large surfaces of tn,
same kind of lands in Alabama anC
Mississippi. Grapes also grow, we'll OF
J the islands along the cost Of Louisiana
{ on the Cote Gelee hills of Attakapas
andOn the bluff lands of the State, an(
OIL mOSb Ol Gu0 QUIET lduuS. we nav
every reason to believe that grapes an(
wine will in time become highly impor
tant productions in the State, and tnei
I value reckOned in millions instead O
thousands of dollars. The ample SUP
, ply Of home made wines may check tn,
: rayages Of the whisky plague, and tn,
| abundance Of grapes may be Of grea
, advantage to the health of the people
! as well as a cheap luxury for the multi
: tude in city and country. ..
STRAWBERRY CULTURE.
, Nh. Manard has had some experienc
in strawberry culture in the pine land
of the jackson Railroad. He says straw
berries may be produced for the New Or
leans market from March to JUNE
' three months. Wilson's Albany bear
t three months, and is prolific, and bear
shipping remarkably well. In a goo
e season they produce a second cro1
blossoming in October, and bearin
ripe fruit by Christmas.
APPLES, PEARS AND HOMEMADE TEA
? Some of the early varieties of apple
! do remarkably wen in pine lands Of til
jackson Railroad. In size and dualit
they would be no discredit to the appl
: orchards in higher latitudes,