Freeland tribune. (Freeland, Pa.) 1888-1921, 1894-03-05
NEW Y0RK'S VINEYARDS.
ONE OF THE WORLDS BEST GRAPE
GROWING DISTRICTS.
An Industry That Gives Employ
ment to $4,000 PeOple-Pick-
Ing and Packing the Crop.

readers. The grape-growing districts
of the Empire State are: The Hudson
River district, situated in the counties
of Orange, Ulster, Rockland, Putnam
and Westchester, comprising 12,5OO
acres; the Lake Kenka district, in
Guiding Yates and Steuben Counties,
of $4,000 acres; the Seneca, Wayne
and Ontario districts, aggregating
$500 acres the Chautauqua district,
along the shores of Lake Erie in
Chautauqua County, New York, and
in Erie County, Pennsylvania, of 1O,-
900 acres.
AS the grand total. New York with
43, 900 acres of vineyard, is the second
State in the Union in the extent and
value of grapegrowing, with Cali
fornia in the lead. The grape industry
in New York gives employment to over
25, 900 people, and it represents an
investment of $22, 900, 900
Some idea of New York's present
and future wealth from grape-g1 owing
can be gained from the figures col
lected three years ago by the United
States Census Bureau. The vintage of
1890 was rare one. In that year the
grape growers of New York sold over
15, 900 tons OF grapes to the wineries,
and they shipped 40, 900 tons, or 9S,-
900, 900 pounds of table grapes to
Eastern markets principally, while
several carloads went to England.
Now, that portion of the Empire
State known as the "1ake region" is
ono of the best grape growing districts
in the world. We refer to the country
around the five lakes--Seneca, Kenka,
Canandaigua, Chautauqua and Erie. 1t
is in this country that viticulture
reaches its greatest excellence. Many
vineyards are as clean and well kept as
n garden, and the vines are not al
lowed to run riot, but they are trained
to climb about three lines of wire
strung from posts, each about ten feet
apart. The growing shoots are
trimmed back to the upper wire,
which is about four feet from the
ground. Thus, the vineyard presents
very uniform appearance.
The headquarters of the grape in
dustry in New York are around Lake
ihthhhs ~ snttt VI wafer
banked on either side by rows and
rows of green vines. Such is the
landscape for twenty-five miles, and it
puts one in mind of the grape districts
of France and Germany. The vine
yards on Bluff Point are worth going
miles to see.
The vineyards look their best when
the vines are ready to be stripped of
their big clusters The grape picking
begins early in September, after the
berries put on their coats of many col
ors. The fruit is strewn on back
ground, like the figured patterns of
an Administer carpet
When the grape crop is ready for
picking there is call for ''help." Ex-
pert pickers and packers are then in
demand. Young men, rosy checked
girls and gray-haired matrons come to
the vineyards from the neighboring
farms and villages. Most of the work
ers look eagerly forward to the grape
crop from year to year, and they de-
pend upon grape money" for winter
supplies.
IN
the workers in the vineyard while the
dew is on the leaves. That is the time
to see tho nic,uresouo s;do of craze
growing. The grape crop is picked in
boxes which hold from thirty to forty
pounds when they are full. The pick
ers cut off the grapes with pair of
shears, which have coiled spring in
the handle to give strength. When
the boxes have been filed they are car
ried to the end of the lows, where
there is roadway. The boxes are
gathered twice day and carted to the
packing house, An expert picker will
I'LL from twenty to thirty boxes a day.
The workers are paid usually by the
day, sometimes by the box. The
wages paid to grape-pickers and pack
ers average about one dollar per day
and board.
The number OF crates and baskets
required IN season to send the grape
enormous