wire in the Kniffin training, which is usually No. 10, as the greater part of the weight is then upon the top wire. No. 9 is sometimes used, but it is heavier than necessary. No. 14 is occasionally used for the middle and upper rows in the upright systems, but it is not strong enough. The following figures show the sizes and weights of these and similar iron and steel wires:

The plain annealed iron wire costs about 3 cents per pound, and the galvanized—which is less used for vineyards—3½ cents. Of No. 12 wire, about 160 pounds is required per acre for a single run on rows eight feet apart, and about 500 pounds for three runs. The cost of No. 12 wire per acre, for three runs, therefore, is about $15.

The wire is secured to the intermediate posts by staples driven in firmly so that the wire will not pull through readily of its own weight, but still loosely enough to allow of the tightening of the wires. In other words, the head of the staple should not quite touch the wire. Grape staples are of three lengths, about an inch, inch and a quarter, and an inch and a half respectively. The shortest length is little used. The medium length is used for hard-wood posts and the longest for soft posts, like chestnut and cedar. These staples cost five cents per pound usually, and a pound of the medium length contains from 90 to 100 of the No. 10 wire size. An acre, for three wires, will therefore require, for this size, about nine or ten pounds of staples. In windy regions, the wires should be placed upon the windward side of the posts.

There are various devices for securing the wire to the end posts, but the commonest method is to wind them about the post once and secure them with a staple, or twist the end of the wire back upon itself, forming a loop. The wires should be drawn taut to prevent sagging with the weight of fruit and leaves. In order to allow for the contraction of the wires in winter, some growers loosen the wires after harvest and others provide some device which will relieve the strain. The Yeoman's Patent Grape-Vine Trellis is a simple and effective lever-contrivance attached to each wire, and which is operated to loosen the wires in fall and to tighten them in spring. The end post is sometimes provided upon the back with a square-headed pin which works tightly in an inch and a half augur hole and about which the end of the wire is wound. A square-headed iron wrench operates the pin, while the tension of the wire around the side of the post keeps the pin from slipping. This device is not durable, however. An ingenious man can easily contrive some device for relieving the tension, if he should think it necessary. As a matter of practice, however, the wires soon stretch and sag enough with the burden of fruit and vines to take up the winter contraction, and most growers do not release the wires in fall. It will be found necessary, in fact, to tighten the wires and to straighten up the posts from year to year, as they become loose. It is always a profitable labor to tamp the ground firmly about all the posts every spring. The wires should always be kept tight during the growing season to prevent the whipping of the vines by wind. This is especially important in white grapes, which are discolored by the rubbing of leaves and twigs. Unless the vines are very strong it will be necessary to stretch only one wire the first winter.

Trellises are often made of slats, as shown in Fig. 18, but these are always less durable than the wire trellises and more expensive to keep in repair; and in the older portions of the country, where timber is dear, they are also more expensive at the outset. They catch the wind, and, not being held together by continuous strands, are likely to blow down in sections. Fuller particulars concerning the styles of trellis are given in the discussions of the different systems of training.

Tying.—Probably the best material for tying the canes and shoots to the trellis is raffia. This is a bast-like material which comes in skeins and which can be bought of seedsmen and nurserymen for about 20 cents a pound. A pound will suffice to tie a quarter of an acre of upright training throughout the season. Raffia is obtained from the strippings of an oriental palm (Raphia Ruffia). Wool-twine is also still largely used for tying, but it is not so cheap and handy as raffia, and it usually has to be cut when the trellis is stripped at the winter pruning, while the raffia breaks with a quick pull of the vine. Some complain that the raffia is not strong enough to hold the vine during the season, but it can easily be doubled. Osier willows are much used for tying up the canes in the spring, and also for summer tying, especially in the nursery regions where the slender trimmings of the cultivated osier willows are easily procured. Wild willows are often used if they can be obtained handily. These willows are tied up in a small bundle, which is held upon the back above the hips by a cord passed about the body. The butts project under the right hand, if the person is right-handed, and the strands are pulled out as needed. The butt is first used, the tie being made with a twist and tuck, the strand is then cut off with a knife, and the twig is operated in like manner until it is used up. When wool-twine is used, the ball is often held in front of the workman by a cord which is tied about it and then passed about the waist. The ball is unwound from the inside, and it will hold its shape until the end becomes so short that it will easily drag upon the ground. Some workmen carry the ball in a bag, after the manner of carrying seed-corn. Raffia is not so easily carried in the field as the wool-twine or the willow, and this fact interferes with its popularity. Green rye-straw, cut directly from the field, is much used for tying the shoots in summer. Small wire, about two-thirds the size of broom-wire, is used occasionally for tying up the canes in spring, but it must be used with care or it will injure the vine. Corn-husks are also employed for this purpose when they can be secured. Bass-bark is sometimes used for tying, but in most of the grape regions it is difficult to secure, and it has no advantage over raffia.

It is very