Grape Growing in Florida 9

bearing than poorly rooted home produced vines. Planting stock
which is two years old may be as good as that one year old, if
properly chosen but it is easier to pick out the vigorous vines
from the one-year stock than from the two-year, and conse-
quently the one-year vines usually are preferable. Some vari-
eties desirable for planting do not grow well on their own roots
and must be grafted onto other stocks. Where this is done the
rootstocks are planted in the same manner and receive the same
care as the other varieties until the second season, when they
are grafted to the desired varieties.
 Cuttings.-For the person who plans his vineyard far enough
in advance so that growing of his own nursery is practical, cut-
tings are frequently the cheapest method of getting a start.
They may be the best in the long run if sufficient care is given
to the vines in the nursery. Hardwood cuttings constitute the
most common method of propagating grapes. The cuttings may
be obtained at almost any time after the vines become dormant
until about two weeks before the sap begins to flow in the spring.
However, if the cuttings are obtained early in the dormant period
they may be handled so that a good callus formation will be
obtained and better root growth will develop when the cuttings
are set out the following spring.
 Wood of about pencil size or slightly larger should be chosen
from one-year-old canes which are comparatively straight, well
matured, and with well developed buds. The cutting should be
8 to 12 inches long and carry three or four buds spaced four to
six inches apart. These specifications may be varied somewhat
if there is a scarcity of suitable canes, but extremes in length
or diameter should be avoided. When making cuttings it is
customary to make a straight cut at the top about an inch above
the upper bud and a slanting cut through the lower node opposite
its bud. The inch of wood above the upper node prevents dry-
ing out of this bud when the cutting is lined out and the slant-
ing cut through the lower node accelerates rooting.
 The cuttings should be bound into bundles of about 50 each
with the lower ends even. After they are labeled and securely
bound they should be buried in trenches in a well drained loca-
tion with the butt ends up and covered with 6 to 8 inches of
soil. The purpose of inverting the cuttings in the trench is to
encourage callusing of the butt ends while the tops remain
dormant. In the spring it is well to observe the cuttings at
frequent intervals to see that the top ends are still dormant