PRUNING GRAPE VINES.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume XXIII, Issue 3017, 28 March 1867, Page 6

PRUNING GRAPE VINES.

A correspondent of the San Jose Mercury, evidently writing with the advantage of a long experience in the culture of the grape, giveß the following directions in regard to pruning the vine : : Pruning the vine the first' year.— This is a simple process, and quickly .done. All shoots ,should be cut away except one, and that cut back to two buds j and if the vines were planted as before directed this will leave them five or six inches above ground, which is sufficiently high for the starting of the vine stem or head, and gives a strong stem much sooner than the usual way, which is to start the vine from the ground the seoond year. All suckers shouldbe taken off, and nothing left to grow except the two shoots from the two buds left for that purpose, and they should have their, ends pinched off when they have grown ten inches long. .This causes thevihe to throw out iide shootsj '.which gives it a tree shape or form ; ii also causes the main stem to thicken, making it stout, and hardy. , ; Pruning second year.— We now find the vines with two limbs each ; these should be cut back to two buds each, and, as before, nothing should be left \o grow except the buds left for that purpose, with this difference— this year there are four instead of two. > i Pruning third year.— The third year there ate ' four branches to the vine. These should all be cut back to tyro buds each ; and as this is the beginning of the fourth year we may expect; a crop of fruit. From this time forward the objects in pruning are threefold. First, for fruit the present year; second, to keep the vine in proper shape ; third, to produce wood for next yew's fruit. Heretofore our- object was only to shape the vine, for " just as the twig is bent the tree inclined." Some of the vines will be too small to bear the fruit of eight buds; such may have one branch cut off close to the old wood,' and leave but three spurs with the two buds each- During the spring and summer all vines should be thoroughly cultivated, and nothing left to grow except the budf, left for that pnrpose »t pruning time ; and skinnier pruning should be followed— that is, pinch off the ends 'of the' young shoots until the vines are five years old at least. In my opinion summer pruning should be followed up, no matter how old the vines; Many, however, do not approve of summer pruning at all. , i Pruning Fourth Year.— Before proceeding further however, on pruning, we will say a few words on the nature and character of the buds on a grapevine. There are many engaged in the grape oul-; ture who think one budjas good as another for fruit ; but in this they are mistaken. There are three kinds of buds on a grapevine, namely, the primary, the secondary, and the adventitious buds. The primary buds are those that formed upon the shoots that grew the year just past, from the pre-1 yious year's wood, and are alone the fruit-bearing bud*. Secondary buds are those that form upon side shoots of this year's growth, and never produce fruit. The adventitious buds are those that form around the stem ef the vine where branches have been cut off, and produce suckers, and on young' vines sometimes produce fruit, but on old vines seldom, if ever, and are never to be relied on for fruit. Then, again, all the primary birds are hot, equally fruitful. The first bud from the main stem, as not so good as the second, and the first and second together will not produce ai muoh fruit as either the third, fourth, or fifth buds alone ; nor will it be. ■o large or fine-flavoured. Notwithstanding this, j the first and second buds are all that are left on the vine when pruned to the short-spur system, as is generally practiced in this country. In consideration of the above [facts, I prefer what is called the "long and short-spur system of pruning the vine." That is, after they are four years old (as up to that time the vine can be formed better by the short-spur plan), cut half, the limbs to spun . of four or five buds each, or enough to make as many fruit buds as the vine is able to bear : the others should be cut back to two buds each. This year the long spurs will produce the fruit and the i short ones the timber for next year's fruit. Next I pruning cut off the lopg spurs that produced fruit \ the year just past, close up to the first limbs on the long spurs ; cut those shoots back to two buds each, and those shoots that grew from the short spurs of last year out to four or five buds each, aad so on alternately, from year to year. By this system we always have the best buds upon the vine for fruit with a leis number of branches, consequently not so many outs on the vine ; also, by this plan the product will be larger and better, in proportion to the timber left upon the vine. Vines should be allowed to bear sufficient fruit to keep their branches from interlocking together. This may be done without overbearing. If vines be allowed to bear all they are able without injury to themselves, their branches will not grow more than about four feet long.