Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1906-07-13
HOW TO GROW GRAPES
The Proper Way Of Planting and Fertl-
liking to Secure an Abundance Of
Good Fruit,

The Proper Way Of Planting and Fertl-
liking to Secure an Abundance Of
Good Fruit.
The vine is easily planted cultivated
and fruited The cause Of failure to get
fruit is not in the soil, or the nurseryman,
or the climate, as a rule. There are some
soils not favorable to the grape, and there
are some nurserymen or their agents who
sell inferior and worthless stock, but If
the vine is planted as II should be, and
tended with even moderate care. it will
repay its owner by bearing fruit If the
soil is heavy and wet and the water
stands on it or in it, neither the vine nor
any fruit tree willbear being planted in it,
Swamp oak or soft maple or skunk cab
bage would thrive in It, but not fruit
bearing trees or vines. Yet sucn a soil
may be put in condition for vines IL there
is any fall for drainage. Such soil may
grow abundance of fruit IL well drained
and it is Of little use to plant the vine in
1t II IL is not. Drainage improves the
land for any and every crop of the farm
and garden. A stony, gravelly soil'may not
suggest fertility, but it is safe to plant
the vine in it and expect fruit, If it is
properly done.
The vine may be planted in a large
hole. the bottom of which has been lined
with broken bones and the filling-in
will thrive If thus planted If some atten-
ton is given to pruning and training
but there is better way. 1t is to plant
the vine as suggested above, in a large
hole with broken bones at the bottom of
It, the illing-in dirt being mixed with bone
meal and wood ashes, 20 inches or two
feet from the line Of arbor or trellis. II
is important to understand this, so 1t is
repeated: Plant the vine 20 inches or TWO
feet from the arbor or trellis where It is
to grow, drive a stake and train 10 1t the
first year. When the leaves fall trim
it back to 31k or four feet of the root
II 1t has not made more than four feet
of growth. cut of the terminal bud only
Now trench should be dug from the hole
where the vine is planted, about eight
inches deep, to the arbor or trellis, and
the vine should be bent down and laid in
the trench; the filling-in dirt should nave
bone meal mixed with it Fill in the
trench, firm the soil and turn up the end
of the vine TO the trelis. In this way of
planting the vine will have feeding ground
in the hole in which the roots were first
planted and also In the two feet distance
to the trellis. 1t will throw out roots all
the distance in the trench and feed upon
whatever fertilizing and nourishing ma
terial has been filled In. 1t will extend
these roots right and left for great dis
tances and IL there are other vines
planted along the same trellis in the same
way there will be two feet of border be-
tween the holes in which the vines were
first planted and the trellis which may be
enriched from time to time as the vines
grow.
Having such a border along the trellis
will enable the planter to know exactly
where to place the fertilizer for his vines
He may feel sure that the border is
filed with roots. and whatever vine food
is spread upon 1t or lightly dug into 1t will
go directly to nourishing the vines This
border need not be restricted to two feet.
II may be three feet wide, or even more
The more vine stem is laid down in the
soil the more luxuriant will be the root
growth. and this root growth is the
absolute need of the vine in order to pro-
duce abundance OF fruit. BY way Of
Illustration of the failure OF the ordinary
method of planting a vine in a hole where
1t is to grow let II be understood that the
vine will send out two or three great roots
from its foot, which will run through the
soil to great lengths In search of nourisn-
ment. If IL is not supplied near the stem
the roots will go far seeking It, Some
one has said that the vine will expend its
energy in bringing its nourishment from a
distance of 20 or 30 feet to sustain its
life. and will have little vigor to produce
fruit. This may be the true explanation
OF such a vine to produce fruit in
any commensurate degree with it's age
and size. 1t sounds reasonable. But
whether II is the true explanation or not
the fact is that vine with long, thick
roots Will not produce fruit either album
dainty or of good quality compared with
the vine which finds nourishment near
the base of its stem and fills the space
about its stem and rootlets.
A vine which has long, struggling roots
and tangle of growth, with meager
fruitage OF inferior grapes, may be re-
newed by digging 1t up, cutting off the
big roots within a foot of the stem, at
the same time cutting the stem of a
foot above the roots and planting in n
rich bed of earth, the flling-in material
being mixed with stable manure. Such a
vine, thus treated will send out a long
stem. IL, 10. 20 feet, the first year after re-
planting. 1t viii take on new life. Many
an old scraggly vine that now sprawIs
over trellis or arbor and bears a few
little bunches of inferior grapes might
be wonderfully renewed by such heroic
treatment 1t is about the only kind Of
treatment that will effectually and quickly
renovate it, After vigor and new growth
have been established feed with plenty of
ground bone and wood ashes.
An easy method of growing new vines
or renewing old ones Is by 'layering''-
that Is, by laying down a cane preferably
a young one in a shallow trench In the
border and covering 1t with good soil
turning up the end so as to leave one or
TWO buds exposed. This cane will throw ont
roots and next year it may be cut from
the main vine and transplanted or left
to grow in the border.