St. Tammany farmer., 1911-04-01
PRU~EN THE GRAPE VINE.
u. A. F. HelWick

The ga is one or the most I'M
portant fit of the world, one of
the r2es ributed, and is epecial-
ly ada . > cultivation in gardens,
trained e1 rellises, upon varandas,
side of buildings and upon stone
walls and rocks. Its heavy foliage and
the large distance it can be made to
run, makes it especially ornamental
for piazza, porches, arbors, pergolas,
etc, the largest grape-growing areas
in the world are found in New York
and California. The main features
of the many systems of pruning dapt-
ed to our American species of grapes
when the vines have become perma
mentally established upon trellises or
other support, consists in cutting
away at the end of each season all
of the wood or canes that have borne
fruit and bringing into their place
new wood of the past seasons growth
that bore leaves, only; thus the top
of the vine is practically renewed an
nually. The size of the punches and
in a great measure the quantity and
quality of the fruit the vines pro-
duces depend largely upon the man
ner and amount of prunings it re-
ceives. The fruit of the grape is
borne upon the new canes that start
from buds in the spring. Thus upon
each of these lateral canes will be
borne from one to four punches of
fruit, according to the number of
canes and the vigor of the vine.
Vines that grow by the roadside
or in the garden and unpruned pro-
duce only small punches because of
the large number of buds that start
into growth. If we cut away half
the buds on these unpruned vines,
the remaining punches will be much
larger and the weight of fruit, per-
haps, increased. The production of
large punches and an abundance OF
fruit is the aim in pruning, and
great many systems have been prac
ticed, the two distinct types, the spar
and the renewal systems by the first
permanent arms Or canes are estab-
lished upon the trellis, veranda, the
fruit being borne upon cnew anes.
These permanent canes may be
trained horizontally or vertically
when the fruiting canes are carried
horizontally-on the trellis or other
support. These arms may be carried
on top wire of trellis or other sup
port and the rputing laterals be al
lowed to droop.
One of the simplest and most
satisfactory systems applicable to the
vineyard, garden trellis arbors is the
renewal system, where all the fruit
is borne on the upper wire exposed
to an abundance of sunlight anr air,
while new canes is grown on the
lower wire for next years fruiting,
the fruit being borne first upon the
rnght arm and on the lext next year.
In pruning vines upon the gardens,
trellis or abor bythis system we first
select enough of the last and
strongest canes of the last year OF
seasons growth to cover the surface
desired, then, carefully cut way all
the growth. A single strong cane
will cover with it's lateral growth q
space of from two to four feet wide,
according to number allowed to grow
and vigor of the vine, so that well
vine presents decidedly on appear
ance, but the fruit will be much bet
ter for this full exposure to sun and
air. Pruning Of the vines may best
Dc uOuc dUOuL lO, uulll
February 10 If very cold winter The
best results can not be obtained in
growing rgapes without summer
pruning. This is done in such a
way as to force the growth of the
vine nito the fruit and the new canes
that are to bear next season, thus, in
the laterals that are bearing fruit
we must force the growth in the fruit
by pinching the ends as soon as the
last bunch of blossoms are visable
and continue to pich as often as
this lateral makes two or three new
leaves. The new canes for next
years growth must be strengthened
by pinching the ends of all laterals
coming out from it as soon as one
leaf lhas been formed, al other
growth must be prevented by rub
bling off as it appears.
In planting rgaes they should
be planted eight feet part in rows
and ows should be from nine to ten
feet apart and on well drained land.