The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1913-10-25
SUCCESSFUL GRAPE CULTURE,
FALE TREATMENT OF THE
SCUPERNONG AND OTHER
VARIETIES OF THE RO.
TUNDIFOLIA GRAPE.
Clemson College Extension Work.
South Carolina Experiment. Station
Press Bulletin No. 1926.

| For those of us who are so for.
tunate as to have among the fruits OF
our home garden the Scuppernonp O,
any of the varieties Of the Rotundi-
IONA grape, it is we'll to consider al
this time the pruning and training
the vines. If we put it off until late
In the season when the Labrusca OF
punch grape is usually pruned, the
vines will be seriously injured by
bleeding. The bleeding may not be.
gin Immediately after the vines are
cut, but as spring advances there will
DE continuous flow Of sap until often
vine is SO weakened as to greatly de-
crease in VigOr and in the power of
fruit production. l have known vines
an men In diameter cut in the early
spring to loose as much as thirty to
forty pounds of sap. The knowledge
or the fact that varieties of this
species of grape are subject to bleed
ing is often the cause of growers al
lowing vines to remain from wear IN
year without being pruned. This is
a great mistake, for there is no doubt
but that the ScuppenrnOng and related
varieties will respond as we'll to
proper treatment Of this kind as will
any OF our cultivated fruits If we
can produce good fruit without prun-
ing, we will be able to produce more
and better fruit if our vines are prop
erly trimmed every year. The time
10 prune is in the fall just after he
leaves are off the vines. If done at
this time, there will be no Injurious
effect. 1t is safe to prune until the
first Of December
TO prune an old or bearing vine
where no special method of training
has previously been practiced, the first
thing necessary is to remove all dead
or injured wood. A sufficient number
of the branches are then cut out to
allow free circulation Of air and
to let in plenty of sunlight, both of
which are essential for the produc-
ton of the best quality Of fruit. In
addition at least half the number of
side canes are removed, the aim being
to restrict the naturally rampant
growth and cause the fruit to be
borne nearer the base of the vine.
The fruit of the grape is produced on
the seasons growth. Hence, if we al
low vine to remain unmolested, the
the fruit will each year be borne fur
ther away from the base until in time
we have long naked stem which
serves only to convey plant food to
the more remote fruitbearing parts.
such branches as these form the
tangled mass often seen on old ar
bors.
The common method Of treatment
OF the Scuppernong grape in the home
garden is to- allow the vine to grow
at VIII upon an arbOr. Much bet
ter results may be obtained, however,
by constructing a wire trellis and fol-
lowing systematic method of train
ing. The trellis has advantages over
the arbor, in that it is more cheaply
and easily constructed; will last long
er; and facilitates the operations of
cultivation, pruning and gathering.
Also larger yield and better uualitv
of fruit can be secured.
A trellis may be constructed by
securely fastening four number twelve
wires eighteen inches apart to solid,
well-braced posts. The posts are
placed thirty feet apart in the row
with a distance of fifteen feet between
the rows. a vine set half way be-
space on each side.
tween the posts will have a fifteen-foot
One of the most successful meth
ods of training by the trellis system
is to cut back the vine to about eight
or ten inches Of the ground imme-
diately after planting. From three to
five shoots are allowed to grow dur
ing the summer, all others being re-
moved by hand as they begin to form
If all the buds were allowed to form
canes they would be much less vigOr-
Gus than If only definite number ne
preserved. The canes are tied to six
foot stakes during the growing sea-
son and the following fall the trellis is
constructed. The only training nec-
essary at this time is to sperad the
canes on the wires to n fan shape and
to tie them securely. The taller
branches are carried to the top wire
while the shorter ones go to fill up the
lower wires. Very little pruning is
necessary. The branches thus ar
ranged constitute the perman N,
framework of the vine and should he
kept as nearly as possible an euua