Author: William Thomson

Publisher: Theclassics.Us

Published: 2013-09

Total Pages: 38

ISBN-13: 9781230732244

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1865 edition. Excerpt: ...and then cleared away all the old soil and raised the roots close up to the front wall. We thus had the whole of the roots disengaged from the soil, as there was then no border inside the house. I had them laid as fast as possible into the new soil, and well watered. Their foliage all flagged and hung down; but I kept the house close, moist, and warm, and excluded all the direct rays of the sun effectually. The berries in the bunches were the size of peas, and for a few days they were quite wrinkled in their skins. At the end of a week the leaves began to turn up a little. I then took off the tarpaulin and put on a lighter shading of tiffany, and in the course of another week I removed this also and put on hexagon netting. In a month from the date of the operation they were perfectly recovered and growing fast. They ripened 30 lb. of good grapes the same year, and in 1856 bore a splendid crop of fruit, and continued to do so for three subsequent years. The vines were, however, old, and had been pruned on the long-spur system, which rendered them unsightly. All our other vineries were planted with young vines in 1856, and in 1860 were in full bearing. Under these circumstances I was induced to make arrangements for doing away with the old vines in question, but, before doing so, determined to have one more crop off them as early as possible in 1861, and replant the house the same year. To hasten this I removed a pine-pit no loDger required in the house, the removal of the front wall of which gave access to the roots of the vines in the outside border through the arches of the front wall of the house. I then filled the interior of the house, previously occupied by the pit, with hot fermenting dung and leaves. This material was placed in...