" Those, however, whose tastes carry them to such
lengths in vine-culture will be sure to purchase exhaustive
treatises on the subject, and will therefore give no heed to these
simple practical chapters. It is my aim to enable the business man
returning from his city office, or the farmer engrossed with the
care of many acres, to learn in a few moments, from time to time,
just what he must do to supply his family abundantly with fruits
and vegetables.
If one is about to adopt a grape-culture as a calling, common-
sense requires that he should locate in some region peculiarly
adapted to the vine. If the possessor of a large farm purposes to
put several acres in vineyard, he should also aim to select a soil
and exposure best suited to his purpose. Two thousand years ago
Virgil wrote, "Nor let thy vineyard bend toward the sun when
setting." The inference is that the vines should face the east, if
possible; and from that day to this, eastern and southern
exposures have been found the best. Yet climate modifies even this
principle. In the South, I should plant my vineyard on a north-
western slope, or on the north side of a belt of woods, for the
reason that the long, hot days there would cause too rapid an
evaporation from the foliage of the vines, and enfeeble, if not
kill them.
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