. Amateur fruit growing. Fruit-culture. THE GRAPE. 43 Soil.—The best soil for a vineyard is a rich gravelly or sandy loam, with an open clay sub-soil; but a somewhat clayey loam will do very well if sufficiently drained to remove any excess of mois- ture. Before planting the land should be thoroughly prepared by plowing and harrowing until in the best condition. Where there is not good surface drainage, as on some prairie farms, it will be found a good plan to plant the vines on ridges made by turning six furrows back to back. In other locations the land should be kept smooth. The Best Vines f
. Amateur fruit growing. Fruit-culture. THE GRAPE. 43 Soil.—The best soil for a vineyard is a rich gravelly or sandy loam, with an open clay sub-soil; but a somewhat clayey loam will do very well if sufficiently drained to remove any excess of mois- ture. Before planting the land should be thoroughly prepared by plowing and harrowing until in the best condition. Where there is not good surface drainage, as on some prairie farms, it will be found a good plan to plant the vines on ridges made by turning six furrows back to back. In other locations the land should be kept smooth. The Best Vines for planting are strong one-year or thrifty two-year-old plants from layers or cuttings, and only those having a good root system should be used. Plants more than three years old are not desirable, as young, thrifty plants soon outgrow those that are old and large when transplanted. It matters little about the direction of the rows, they should be laid out so as to prevent the wash as much as Fig. 30.—A rooted layer. Each bud making a new plant. The Distance Between the Plants will depend somewhat on the kinds planted, the manner of pruning and the soil; but the strong growing varieties, which are most desirable, should gener- ally be set ten by ten feet apart each way, to allow for the growth of roots and a good circulation of air between the vines. When the vineyard is much shut in it will be found advantageous to in- crease this distance, but when located in an airy position and on retentive soil the plants may be set eight by eight feet. Planting.—The most rapid way of planting is to furrow out the land both ways and put the vines at the intersection of the fur- rows. Before planting the tops of the vines should be cut off so as to leave only two or three buds, and if the roots are very long it will facilitate planting to cut them back to eight or ten inches in length; shortening the roots to this extent does not seem to injure the growth of the plant. On li
Size: 2516px × 993px
Photo credit: © Library Book Collection / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, booksubjectfruitculture, bookyea
