The semi-weekly messenger. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1897-1908, 1905-03-21
Ell
OF THE
S~CUPPERNONG GRAPE


TO the best methods Of c~ultivatrng the
Scuppernong Grape, that we give q
: few OF The more important "details In a
circular letter. We wish 10 state. II the
beginning. thar We are better posted
as TO wine making than grape growing.
and did o suppose there were any
land owners in Eastern North Carolina
who did o know as much about grape
growing as we do. As there does not
seem 10 be a full knowledge. however,
we give what we know For what 1t Is
sorth.
The Scuppernong viii grow and pro-
duce grapes on any OF the sandy lands
couth OF Norfolk. Va, While certain
We think we may safely say that n
land which grows cotton or corn nicely
VIII produce Scuppernong grapes. They
do not seem TO bear well West OF Middle
North Carolina. THE HOME OF THE
GRAPE IS IN THE EASTERN PART
OF THE STATE"
| Cuttings may be secured In great
quantity by taking any Scupperaong
vine and letting IL fall or the ground In
June and throwing q few shoveisfull OF
dirt on 1t at from two TO three feet from
the outer ends Of the limbs. These take
DOT quickly in the fresh earth. and can
be taken up and cut off any time from
November 1st 10 March 1st. and set out.
Care should be used IN selecting thrift
ty vines with nice grapes as the vine
| ~reproduces the kind. Seeding wines
from the seed) are not worth planting,
as you do not know what kind Of grapes
they vii produce.
The land should be laid off nicely. In
rows of twenty feet apart. the vines
being set out ten feet apart in the rows,
and planted out of the ground not less
than seven feet should be set to each
vine. These should be where practical
BILE, of cedar, oak. or lightwood, as the
setting Of new posts cuts the roots of
the vines. A good cutting will reach
almost to the top of the post when set
out, or grow 10 the top in n yea If
properly cared for. The best method
is to wire the vines. When this done,
T! rows of posts, we'll braced, have to be
set out around the edge of the vine
| yard, to which are attached the larger
wires. Down each row a No. 10 galvan-
lied wire is run as a governor wire,
and stapled to the top of a c post.
| Across these governor wires you stretch
at first, one No. Il wire If we'll braced
at the ends, this gives all the posts
secure bracing. AS the vines grow and
spread out o add one each side of tie
No. ii wire, other wires. always keep
ing good arbors for the vines to run on.
| II you let the branches fall down and
have to support their own weight, they
do not grow so rapidly. The vine should
not be allowed to bunch up in knots,
but be kept spread cut and growing
uniformly in all directions. 1t takes
about 10 vines to set an acre properly
aid off. These can be bought through
| us at 5 cents each. If you cannot get
them from a nearby vine.
The land should be cultivated with
crops that do not grow too high, and
the vines kept free from trash around
the roots, which grow close to the tor
| of the ground, do not cultivate unGeT
the branches, as the roots extend anu
draw ~sustenance as far as the branches
run. Hence if you pillow close to the
vines you tear up the roots. The best
method we know is to keep the roots ali
around the body of the vine n as
far as the branches extend, mulched
| with a heavy coat of wood-mold ano
straw. The home of the vines is in the
piny woods, where, in the rich origin
| soil, it spreads hundreds of feet. The
best vines we have ever seen were Ia
old garden plots where they were never
! plowed, but the weeds kept down. A
good plan is, perhaps to have sheeps
Craze under the vines, but the best plan
| is to keep in cultivation the land not
| shaded, and to keep the weeds down on
the rest by having a heavy nnulc1-
While fertilizers may produce unusual
~ heavy crops. we advise using coarse
! earn manure in connection with heaVy
| coatings of wood-mould and straw, 50
as to keep the soil light n productive.
| While the vine will grow and produce
on light sandy land that VIII hardy
grow cow peas, yet it should not be ex-
! pected to get good crops from poor land
The soil should be fortified as described
| above. Arbors can be made of o J,
| as are frequently seen. on q small scale,
| but the expenses Of wooden arDors on a
| large scale IS considerable Galvanized
| wire on good posts is the cheapest in
| the long run, and makes much less WORK
| once the vineyard is we'll wired. II
| means only a few posts each year, and
a little wiring to take up he SLACK
| places, and the hauling in Of oars
| h1anures. We do not believe in plowine
close to the vines It breaks the roofs
! and inevitably damages the vines
AS to gathering. the preferable plan
is to gather by hand, and in small VINE
| yards this can be done. We pay spe-
cia prices for selected, mand- gathered
grapes. But in a large vineyard this
is not practicable. Poles are attached
to strong sheets made of canvass, eacn
about ten feet square, and with leather
handles and a man to each side Of tee
sheet, it IS easily carried around be-
tween the posts. which are set in even
rows. Another mar Or boy, with a
forked stick, shakes the vine gently
lust above the sheet, n h ripe
grapes fall and are caught. Children
pick up the few grapes which fall out
side the sheet. The line should not
be beaten hard, as not only do You
thus get green fruit, but damage the
- -. 1-~4-- %hA 4nn62r naer