H.—s.

with European varieties, especially by German vintners, will not do for American vines, which must have ample room to spread and a free circulation of air. The number of vines required to set an acre (containing 43,560 square feet) will be— Distance, feet. Metres. Number. 6ft. by 6ft. .. .. .. .. 1-85 by 1-85 .. .. .. 1,210 6ft. by 7ft. .. .. .. .. 1-85 by 2-15 .. .. .. 1,037 6ft. by Bft. .. .. .. .. 1-85 by 2-46 .. .. 907 6ft. by 9ft. .. .. .. .. 1-85 by 2-75 .. .. 807 Oft. by 10ft. .. .. .. .. 1-85 by 3 .. .. ..725 7ft. by 7ft. .. .. .. .. 2-18 by 2-15 .. .. 889 7ft. by Bft. .. .. .. .. 2-15 by 2-46 .. .. 777 7ft. by 9ft. .. .. .. .. 2-15 by 2-75 ~ .. 690 7ft. by 10ft. .. .. .. .. 2-15 by 3 .. .. 622 Bft. by Bft. .. .. .. .. 2-46 by 2-46 .. .. 680 Bft. by Oft. .. .. .. .. 2-46 by 2-75 .. .. 605 Bft. by 10ft. .. .. .. .. 2-46 by 3 .. .. 545 9ft. by 9ft. .. .. .. .. 2-75 by 2-75 .. .. 537 9ft. by 10ft. .. .. .. .. 2-75 by 3 .. .. 484 10ft, by 10ft. .. .. .. 3 by 3 .. .. 435 One acre =41 ares French measure, or one hectare nearly equal to two and a half acres. Having determined the distance at which you desire to plant the vines, mark off the rows, running them parallel, and with the most level lines of your slope or hillside, so that you may easily plough between the rows and that the ground may not wash. (On an eastern slope the rows will therefore run in a direction from north to south, which most vine-dressers prefer.) Be careful, on sloping ground, to leave spaces for surface-drains; the steeper the hill-sides the more frequent must these surface-drains be. Then divide the rows into the desired distances by the aid of a stretched line, and put small stakes where each plant is to stand. The depth of these holes must necessarily vary somewhat with the nature of the soil. On very steep hill-sides, and especially on southern slopes, with naturally warm, dry soil, you must plant deeper than on gentle slopes with deep, rich soil, or on bottom land and rich prairies. Eight inches will be deep enough on the latter; on the former we should plant from 12in. to 14in. deep. Having made the holes—and it is best not to make too many at a time, as the ground will dry out too quickly—you can go to planting. In planting it is important to give the roots their former position, and to have them each and all firmly sorrounded with good fine soil, pressing it down with the hands or foot; then fill up the hole with earth, forming a very small hill over the head of the plant, so that no part of it may dry up, yet so as to permit the young tender shoot to penetrate easily. Every beginner in grape-culture knows that young rooted vines are used for planting, whether it be for whole vineyards or merely for the garden or arbour, and that such young vines are usually raised in the nursery from cuttings or layers. But the reason why they are not grown from seeds is not generally so well known, and even among old experienced grape-growers some erroneous ideas prevail with regard to seed-culture and questions connected with this now more than ever important and interesting subject. It is scarcely necessary to mention that the wild grape grows and propagates itself from seed only. This wild grape constantly reproduces itself; i.e., its seedlings do not materially differ from their parent vines. Transplanted into richer soil, and receiving care and cultivation, its berries may increase in size, and in the course of years may somewhat improve and change its character ; if, then, we take the seed of this cultivated vine, especially if it was grown in proximity to other different grapes, the seedlings of these will more materially differ. So great is this tendency to variation, that of a hundred seedlings of one cultivated vine scarcely two will be found exactly alike ; some will differ widely; nearly one-half will be male plants and will not produce any fruit at all, while most of the others will retrograde to their wild origin. For practical grape-culture we should use none but the best rooted plants of those kinds which we wish to produce. Some vintners, from supposed economy, use only cuttings to plant their vineyards, placing two cuttings where one vine is to grow; but the result generally is unsatisfactory, especially with American varieties, most of which do not root as easily as those of the European vinifera class, and make much replanting necessary; and, where both cuttings do grow, one must be pulled out. Those vintners would do better, by far, by first growing their cuttings one or two years in nursery rows, and afterwards transplanting the best of them to their intended vineyard. But if we desire to obtain new varieties we must plant seed. This is a far more uncertain, slow, and difficult operation than most people imagine, and but very few have been successful in it. Just as some careful breeders of animals have succeeded in raising improved kinds, on which they engrafted certain qualities by crossing, so have horticulturists endeavoured to reach the same end by hybridizing the best varieties of grapes and planting their seeds, having due regard to the characteristics of the parents from which they breed. But now let us return to the modus operandi of planting. Take your vines, in a pail with water, or wrapped in a wet cloth, from the place where they were heeled-in,* to the holes ; when planting, let one person shorten the roots with a sharp knife, then spread them out evenly to all sides, and let another fill in with well-pulverised earth. The earth should be worked in among the roots with the fingers, and pressed to them with the foot. Lay the vine in slanting, and let its top

* On receiving your vines from the nursery they should be taken out of the box without delay, and heeled-in, which is done as follows : In a dry and well-protected situation a trench is made in the soil 12in. to 15in. deep, wido enough to receive the roots of the plants, and of any required length, the soil being thrown out upon one side. The plants are then set thickly together in the trench, with the tops in a sloping direction and against the bank of soil thrown out of the trench ; another trench is made parallel to the first, and the soil taken from it is thrown into the first, covering the roots carefully, filling in all of tho interstices between them. Press down the soil, and smooth off tho surface, so that water shall not lodge thereon. When one trenched is finished, set tho plants in the next, and proceed as before. When all this is completed, dig a shallow trench around the whole, so as to carry off the water and keep the situation dry.

4