VITICULTURE.

New Zealand Journal of Agriculture, Volume XV, Issue 4, 20 October 1917, Page 231

VITICULTURE.

S. F. ANDERSON,

Vine and Wine Instructor

THE VINEHOUSE.

The growth of vines during November is very strong, , so that there will be much pinching and tying-back of the fruit laterals to be done. If this has been followed up as advised in Bulletin 40, “ Cultivation of the Vine under Glass,” there will be no great reduction of foliage at any time sufficient to cause a check to the plant. An hour or so,, according to the size of the house, should be devoted daily to this work. As the shoots acquire sufficient toughness they can be tied back to the wires, and this can nearly always be done before the thinning of the fruit. ■

The question has been asked by some growers how to deal with those laterals that are not bearing fruit. The answer is to treat them the same as if they were showing fruit. On account of the foliage they bear they are as necessary to the vine as the others. Their function is also to develop the buds for the next year’s output of growth, when they will probably bear fruit in the usual way. Their being non-fruit-bearing this season has been caused most probably by their having been overcropped the previous season.

Another great advantage of daily attention to this work is the detection of mealy bug, mildew, or any other vine trouble that may make its appearance, followed by the application of the correct means of control. Prompt treatment of troubles of this kind saves an immense amount of worry and trouble afterwards. Spraying the vines should be withheld until flowering is quite over.

If the ventilators are closed at night they should be opened slightly very early in the morning in order to allow the moisture condensed on the foliage to dry gradually and so prevent scalding. This applies to the top ventilators only. Do not use the bottom ventilators at all until the grapes are coloured. They cannot be opened without causing draught, which is harmful to any plant grown in the still, warm atmosphere of a house. Some growers attribute mildew to the latter condition, but as mildew comes on outdoor-grown vines more than on those grown under glass this contention is doubtful. In any case the health of the vine is certainly controlled better in the more even temperature. On very hot days one of the doors may be opened for a time, and the path through the house wetted to prevent the temperature going too high. Provided ventilation from the top is ample, no harm will come to the vines if the temperature goes up to 90° or ioo°.

All surplus bunches should be removed before coming into flower. Overcropping is the source of much trouble. Thin out the fruit well, and keep up a high state of cultivation. ..

The application of water to the cool-vinehouse borders must depend entirely upon local conditions. If they are kept frequently hoed, and the damp soil can be seen on removing the top few inches, they do not need watering. There are, however, plenty of vinehouses so situated that they do not get sufficient moisture in a dry season. In such cases some water must be given them. It should not be done by flooding the house or outside borders. A furrow scraped out with the hoe along both the inside and outside of the house, and the water run into this and allowed to soak in steadily, is the proper method.

THE VINEYARD

Vines will now be pushing out their growth, and most kinds will be ready for disbudding. This work on the outdoor vines is confined principally to the stem and crown of the vine—that is, where the vine has been pruned in the usual manner during the winter, leaving the two 4 ft. rods of last year’s wood (see Fig. io, on page 201 of the Journal for March last).

The disbudding consists in reducing the numerous shoots that are put forth to just those that are required for producing new rods for the ensuing season, and these are to .be trained up to and along the

top wire (see Fig. 10, C, C, page 203 of same Journal). Where the growth of the vine has been such that a new rod could not be obtained, then the old rod has to be retained and spur-pruned (as shown in Fig. 12, page 204, idem). This occurs in weaker-growing vines, such as Muscat Hamburgh. In this case leave only two of the strongest shoots from the crown in the former case four should be allowed to grow from the spurs that have been left for that purpose. No disbudding is done on the rods left for fruiting. .

Sulphur the vines as soon as 9 in. or a foot of growth has been made

CELLAR WORK

As the spring advances the wine in the cellar begins to move, particularly in the case of the young wine. This may force the bungs out, so that watch must be kept and the casks gone over daily for a time. Very drying winds occur at this period of the year, so that a certain amount of filling-up must be done.