_Historical and Geographical Notes._--The principal and only raisins of
any great commercial importance which are produced by Greece are the
currants. We have already spoken of their name, and its supposed origin
from the town of Corinth, and of their having been mentioned by Pliny in
the year 75 A. D. The currants must thus very early have been of
considerable importance as a commercial product, although the great
increase in their production is of more recent date. The crusades which
brought the nations of the North in contact with the Orient and the
South also spread the knowledge of the Grecian currants to the distant
parts of Europe. After the Latin conquest, currants became a commercial
article, and we have every reason to suppose that, as early as the
beginning of the thirteenth century, currants had reached the English
shores, and that in the middle of the fourteenth century the English
trade was fully established. Raysins of Corauntz were quoted in 1374 at
two pence and three farthings per pound, equivalent to one dollar and
twenty-five cents in our money at its present value. In 1513, the first
English consul was appointed at Chios, and from that time on a direct
traffic was maintained between the Grecian Islands and the North of
Europe. In 1582, Hakluyt writes that efforts had been made to introduce
the coren plant or vine into England, but that the same failed to fruit.
The first introduction of the Zante vine into England is supposed by
Anderson to have taken place in 1533. In the end of the sixteenth
century, the currant traders were in full intercourse with the Venetians
on the Island of Zante, and the Turks on the mainland or Morea. In 1581,
the Levant Company received a monopoly in the trade of the small fruits
called currants, being the raysins of Corinth. According to Wheler, who
traveled in the Ionian Islands in 1675, Zante produced enough currants
to charge five or six vessels, Cephalonia three or four, and Nathaligo,
Missolonghi and Patros one each. Some few were also brought down from
the Gulf of Lepanto.
As to the native home of the currants, opinions have considerably
differed. Some have supposed Zante or Naxos to have been the original
home of this grape; while others, with better reasons, have held that
their original home was Corinth. Beaujour, who was French consul in
Greece in 1790, says: “The fruit is not indigenous to Morea. No writer
before the sixteenth century mentions it, and the result of my inquiries
is that the currant came from Naxos into the Morea about 1580. It is
true no such plant now exists in Naxos, but it has similarly disappeared
from the territory of Corinth, though it is very certain it was
cultivated there in former days, when the Venetians held the country.”
This account does not agree with the statements of Comte Grasset St.
Sauveur, consul to the Ionian Islands from France in 1781. He states, in
his History of the Ionian Islands, that “the first plants were imported
from Corinth to Zante about two centuries ago” (or about 1580). There
are no exact records of the time or of the introducer; but the date is
fixed by the regulations of the Senate of Venice relating to custom
duties. It is likely this introduction took place not much before 1553,
and was caused by the hostility of the Turks, who then held Morea, to
the merchant vessels of the other nations of Europe, who in fact forbade
them any entrance to the Gulf of Corinth, the principal export place for
the currants. Thus John Locke, who in 1553 describes Zante, speaks of
other products of the island, but not of currants.
Hakluyt states that, in 1586, the chief commodities of the island were
“oyle and currants.” The latter, then, must have been introduced some
time in the middle of the sixteenth century. Lithgow, a Scotch traveler
who in 1609 visited the islands and published an account of the same in
1633, informs us that, besides oyle and wine, Zante produced one hundred
and sixty thousand chickens of currants, each chicken of gold being
equal to nine shillings of English money. And he adds that the custom
duties on those currants amounted to twenty-two thousand piasters (one
piaster is equivalent to six shillings), a sum of money which those
Islanders could not have afforded (they having been, not above sixty
years ago, but a base, beggarly people, and in an obscure place) if it
were not that in England there are some who cannot digest bread, etc.,
without these currants. This seems to imply that, since the introduction
of the currant culture in the Island of Zante about the year 1550, the
Zanteans had suddenly become comparatively wealthy. So suddenly had this
important industry spread, that in 1610, according to Sandys, the chief
export of both Zante and Cephalonia was currants. In 1612, Coryat says
that “Zante is famous for its wine, oile and currants.” Fynes Moryson,
in his “Itinerary” published in 1617, states that “the English merchant
vessels exported currants from Zante and Cephalonia, and from Petrasso
in the Gulfe of Corinth.” Tavernier says, in 1678, that, “Corinth
exports great quantities of currants. Patras does the same, which is all
the trade from those two places.” In 1682, Wheler states that “the ports
of Patros, Nathaligo and Missolonghi, all three together having enough
to lade only one good ship every year.” Randolph, in 1689, mentions that
currants were first planted on the plains of Corinth, and that the plain
about Vostizza produced corn, currants and wine. Of Zante, he says that
it produced two thousand tons of currants. Thus it will seem as if,
through the fostering care of the Venetians, the currant trade was
transplanted from the mainland of Morea to the Islands of Zante and
Cephalonia, there to become of almost national importance. Until the
Turks were expelled from Morea, the latter never made any serious
efforts to recover the lost trade. First in later times the culture of
currants has again spread on the mainland, especially on the northern
shore of the Gulf of Corinth, and to-day the combined production of the
Morean vineyards is largely in excess of that of the Ionian Islands.
In our times the currants are exported either from the mainland of
Greece, the Morea, the ancient Peloponnesus, or from the Grecian
Islands,--Cephalonia and Zante. In Morea, the principal ports for the
exportation of the currants are Patras and Vostizza, although other
ports export a few. Even the Islands of Ithaca and Santa Maura
contribute a few. Efforts have been made to extend the culture of the
currant vine, and introduce it to other islands, but not with any great
degree of success. This is entirely attributed to climatic conditions.
_Characteristics and Quality._--The currants are small, seedless raisins
produced from the currant grape, which again is characterized by small
clusters, which, when perfect, are very compact like the heads of Indian
corn or maize. The skin of the berries is thin, the pulp very sweet,
with a strong flavor and aroma. The raisins are similarly aromatic and
very sweet, sometimes semi-transparent, but generally dark violet. The
flavor of the raisins is entirely distinct from the Muscatel, and is
very superior to that of the also seedless Sultana raisins.
_Soil and Irrigation._--The soil best suited to the currant grape is a
calcareous marl, which must be of good depth, loose, and easily worked.
Such marls are also prized for their great power of retaining moisture.
But vineyards are planted in Cephalonia, Zante and Ithaca in the most
different soils and situations. They are found in gray marls, in red
clay, on the plains and among the hills, in fact, in the most widely
different situations. The soil of Zante contains a small percentage of
sulphate of lime or gypsum, which is by many considered indispensable
for the successful and profitable culture of the currant vine. The
currant vine thrives especially in low and rich land which can be
irrigated, and irrigation is quite essential to the perfect development
of the grapes. Many vineyards, however, are not irrigated, the
irrigation, of course, only being practicable on the plains. This
irrigation is practiced from October to the end of December, often while
the natural rainfall supplies the artificial watering. The lands are
generally small freeholdings, owned by the peasants. The most valuable
currant vineyards are situated on the rich and level valley lands.
_Preparation of the Land for Irrigation._--The preparation of the land
for a currant vineyard is expensive, as the land is hardly ever level
enough to admit of the vines being immediately planted. The surface is
therefore first leveled and divided up in smaller cheeks or flats, each
one surrounded by a bank. The whole is covered with a network of
ditches, which are necessary for the perfect irrigation of the soil.
Where there is water enough, the vineyards are irrigated in November and
December, and are then flooded as often as practicable, the water
sometimes standing on the ground for weeks in succession. In perfectly
arranged vineyards, the irrigation is so managed that the water flows
from one check to another, and is first shut off at the advent of the
New Year, when the pruning and cultivation begins. By this plentiful
irrigation, the ground becomes thoroughly soaked, and remains saturated
until the next season, when rain again sets in and fills the irrigation
canals. No summer irrigation is used in old vineyards, and in young
vineyards only in case of great necessity.
_Distances of the Currant Vines._--The vines are set at various
distances, in some places four feet each way, in others again six by
ten, giving a various number of from 740 to 2,622 to the acre. In some
places, the old practice of planting the vines in groups of four still
exists. Each group consists of four vines one and a half feet apart, and
each group distant six feet from each other either way. Of late,
however, the vines are planted farther apart, probably because the soil
is becoming exhausted, a favorite way being to have the vines closer one
way than the other.
_Care of Cuttings, Planting and Grafting._--Great importance is attached
to procuring cuttings from a distance, or in getting new strains.
Cuttings from the nearest vineyard are never used, as they are
considered to produce inferior vines, and not do as well. To procure
cuttings or vines, the old vines are sometimes cut a few inches below
the surface of the soil, causing the parent plant to throw off numerous
suckers or shoots, which the following winter are separated and used as
we do rooted vines here in California. Three or four years will elapse
before they come into regular bearing. Some vineyards are produced by
grafting the black currant on the wine grape, and many wine vineyards
that do not pay are thus transformed into paying raisin vineyards. The
grafted vines come into bearing much sooner than those grown from
cuttings. The grafting is performed in Zante as follows: The soil is dug
away from the main trunk of the old vine to the depth of from twelve to
eighteen inches, and the trunk cut off square at the bottom of the pit.
Two or three scions are then inserted in the trunk, and made to slightly
project above the ground, in no case with more than two or three eyes.
Clay is then applied to the joint of the graft, and the trunk slightly
covered with leaves, and the hole then filled up with soil. The grafting
is done in the spring, and the cuttings must be kept dormant in dark and
cool cellars.
_Pruning the Vines._--The pruning is done in the fall, just as soon as
the leaves have fallen, and is performed in two parts. In December, the
vines are cleaned of all small, weakly or dead branches, and at that
time only the large and strong branches are left. In February, the
regular cutting back commences, two or three eyes being left on every
spur. There are as many different ideas of pruning the vines in Greece
as there are in California, each one having his favorite methods and
theories as to what is proper and what is not. Some vineyardists prefer
to delay the second pruning until after the vines have started to bud
out, and, when the young shoots are two weeks old, the old wood is so
cut that the bleeding of the vine will not run down on the bud. Bleeding
is at any time considered injurious. The principal pruning is therefore
conducted in February, as being the time most suitable to the currant
grape and conducive to the best crops. Mr. Manoti, a very intelligent
Zanteote currant grower, told Dr. Davy (_Ionian Islands_, page 343) that
he had at one time experimented with pruning the currant vine at
different times of the year. Those pruned in December yielded very few
grapes, which were large; those pruned in April gave plenty, but very
small berries. Again, those pruned in February were in every way the
best. Mr. Manoti added that if he had told one of his neighbors of his
experiments they would have laughed at him, and said, “Whoever thinks of
pruning the uva passa (or currant) in December or April.” This shows how
much the growers are opposed to experimenting and improving upon the
methods which have been handed down to them from their forefathers. As
we have shown, the currant vines are all very closely pruned, very much
in the same way as our Muscats. Seldom more than three spurs are allowed
to remain, each one with two or three eyes. Summer pruning or topping
the branches is never practiced on the currant vines, but generally on
the wine grapes. On the contrary the currant branches are carefully
guarded, and in order that they may not break are tied to stakes from
four to five feet high.
_Care of the Vineyard._--After irrigation is over, the vineyards are dug
over. The soil is dug up around the vines and placed on top of the
ground in small heaps, which process is considered beneficial both to
the roots of the vines and to the soil. In April, this soil is all put
back, and the ground leveled. Each vine is staked. By the middle of
April, the vines are in leaf. By the middle of July, the first fruit is
ripe, and by the middle of August the harvest has everywhere begun. The
stakes for the vines are imported at a cost of $15 or $16 per thousand,
and constitute the most expensive item in the construction of a currant
vineyard.
The mildew or oidium, which some fifty years ago spread all over the
world, destroyed many of the vineyards before the sulphuring was
discovered as a sure remedy. Sulphuring the vines is now regularly
practiced in all the vineyards; but there is a popular belief that the
raisins are no longer of the same fine and pure flavor as they used to
be before the advent of the oidium and the sulphur.
_Ringing the Branches._--A process much used in the currant vineyards is
the ringing of the branches. At the time of blossoming, some of the main
branches are cut in such a way that a small ring of bark is separated
from the branch near its base. The sap which ascends in the interior of
the branch, but which returns by the bark, is thus prevented from
returning, and must remain in the branch. The effect is that a large
number of clusters are formed with berries both larger and sweeter than
those not thus treated. But the practice is not without its drawbacks.
In the dry lands of Cephalonia, where it was first introduced, it was
soon discovered that the ringed vines began to fail after two or three
years, and the method had to be modified or abandoned. In Morea, where
the soil is moister and richer, the ringing did not prove as dangerous,
and is yet practiced, though great care is taken that the same branch is
never girdled or ringed in two successive years. Only the strongest
vines are able to resist the exhausting effects of the process; the
weaker ones should never be forced to overproduce.
The exhalations of fig-trees and pomegranate bushes are considered most
beneficial to the currant grape, and the former are found everywhere
among the plantations, especially along roads and ditches.
_Drying and Curing._--The drying and curing of the currant grapes are
done on drying grounds. These are simply leveled places covered with
fresh cow dung, or cow dung first mixed with water into a paste. When
this paste is dried, it presents a smooth surface, firm but elastic, and
entirely free from smell. This kind of drying ground is considered the
best kind. Inferior drying grounds are simply made of the cleared soil.
The currants dried on the latter are always full of sand and dirt to an
alarming extent, and bring an inferior price in the market. The bunches
are turned several times until dry, when they are raked over with a
wooden rake or broom, by which process the stalks are separated from the
berries. The berries are now gathered, and the better qualities are
winnowed in machines like our fanning-mills. The next step is to sweat
the currants, which is simply done by piling them in air-tight rooms.
The currants are here put in large piles, which by sweating and pressure
become so hard and solid that, when removing the berries, a sharp spade
is used for digging. The vintage begins in July in Zante; Cephalonia
grapes ripen almost one week earlier.
_Cost of Currant Vineyards in Greece._--In the Grecian Islands and
Morea, the best vineyard land varies between $80 and $125 per acre for
unimproved land. To prepare the land for the vineyard and irrigation, it
will cost, in extreme cases, from $20 to $50 more. The first year’s
cultivation and care of the young vines is, of course, different
according to locality, but the average is seldom less than $50 per acre.
The value of already planted property or a vineyard in good bearing is
seldom less than $320 per acre, and often as high as $650 per
acre,--four stremmas. Strange enough, in calculating the cost of a
vineyard in Greece, no one ever takes into consideration the price of
the plantation or the capital invested. The interest on the same is
never considered by the natives. In this respect they resemble our own
farmers, who, in calculating the expenses of their farms, never take
into consideration the labor of themselves and family. Of course, it is
almost impossible to obtain exact calculations of profit. The following
will serve as a sample: An acre of vineyard planted to currants yields
3,200 pounds. The price obtained for the same is two cents per pound, or
$64. The labor for the year on one acre is estimated at $45, leaving a
yearly profit of $19 per acre. In reality, however, this is not a true
statement, as it does not consider the interest on the capital. If the
same should be added, it is evident that there would be but little or no
profit in the growing of currants. The industry simply enables the
peasant who pursues the work to live and support his family, and
possibly to pay his taxes. Only the very best land and the best
vineyards can pay enough to enable its owner to save up a capital,
generally a difficult thing in Greece for any one but a merchant or
government officer.
As a rule, the cost of producing one hundred pounds of currant raisins
is not less than $1.35. Whatever the merchant pays above this to the
producer will be for the benefit of the producer. But, as a rule, this
way of buying direct is not in use. The merchant sells on commission,
and what this means we who have had experience in the raisin business in
this State all know. We will see how a calculation of an acre of
currants will look, when all the expenses are taken into consideration:
One acre of currants equals 3,200 pounds at three cents per
pound $96.00
------
Expense on 3,200 pounds at $1.35 $43.00
Packing and hauling 7.50
Freight, insurance, duty, etc. 22.50
Interest on capital invested 15.00
Merchant charges say 8.00
------
$96.00
In this instance the poor currant raiser has had no other profit than
the five per cent interest on his capital invested; he has, in other
words, come out even. But figures, sometimes, are apt to lie. The
profit, no doubt, is small to the producer, but it must still be some.
He makes, no doubt, fair wages according to his own ideas, and as he has
paid for his capital in labor, and probably never handled a dollar of
the same, he considers himself comparatively well-to-do. But, as currant
vineyards sometimes sell, and sell high, too, it is simply unaccountable
that the interest is never taken into consideration in estimating the
profits of the grower. The currant industry is, I believe, the only one
in the world in which this is not done. I have thus extensively dwelt
upon the profits and expenses of this industry in its native country, on
account of the many attempts to introduce the growing of currants here
in California. The question with us is, will it pay. Our advantage is
that our currants would be protected; but still it is very doubtful if
currant plantations would ever pay enough to warrant us to engage in the
same. The price paid at present is too low, and, as long as Muscatels
bring a higher price, it will probably be the favorite grape with us.
_Consumption and Production._--The importation of currants to England
was, at the end of the last century, about 3,600 tons. In 1832 this had
risen to 7,135 tons, in 1864 to 37,151 tons, and in 1876 to 48,595 tons.
As regards the production of currants in Greece, the average yield from
1816 to 1826 was, for Cephalonia, 2,000 tons, for Zante 3,000 tons, and
for Morea 4,000 tons or over. From that time on the exportations from
Zante and Cephalonia increased, while the export of Morea decreased.
Thus, in 1833, Zante and Cephalonia exported about 11,000 tons, and
Morea only 2,000 tons, this principally on account of the Greek
revolution. In 1840, the three places exported 14,206 tons, which again
in 1849 had risen to 30,850 tons, in 1858 to 32,950 tons, in 1868 to
55,283 tons, and in 1876 to 86,104 tons. This large crop was exported as
follows: England, 60,263 tons; Germany, 1,475 tons; Holland, 4,847 tons;
Trieste, 3,241 tons; America, 11,225 tons; Belgium, 4,105 tons; Various,
948 tons.
Since that time the production of currants has increased greatly in
Greece, especially on the mainland, and now it reaches yearly from
126,000 to 130,000 tons. During the last four years the production has
been about as follows (according to L. C. Crowe in the _California
Fruit-grower_): 1884, 130,000 tons; 1885, 114,000 tons; 1886, 126,000
tons; 1887, 127,000 tons.
In 1886 this crop was produced in the following places:
Gulf of Corinth 7,000 tons.
Vostizza 10,000 “
Patras 12,000 “
Gastuni, Pergos, Olympia 38,000 “
Kyparissia, Figliatra, Gargaliano 17,000 “
Ligudista, Pylos, Modone and Corone 9,000 “
Kalamata and Nisi 14,000 “
Missolonghi, Ætolico, Lepanto 2,500 “
Nauplia and Argos 600 “
-------
Total for Morea and Acarnania 110,000 “
Ionian Islands, Cephalonia, Ithaca, Santa Maura 10,500 “
Zante 6,000 “
-------
Total 126,000 “
Of this crop the United States imported as follows (the freight to New
York in 1886 ranging from 17s. 6d. to 20s. per ton, gross): 1883, 13,895
tons; 1884, 10,175 tons; 1885, 8,283 tons; 1886, 8,755 tons.
In the United States, the consumption of currants has increased largely
during the last twenty-five years. In 1874, we imported 14,141,797
pounds of currants; but in 1888 the importations had increased to
30,636,424 pounds, valued at $1,176,532. The duty is now one cent per
pound in this country; while in England it is seven shillings per
hundred pounds.
The currants exported to the United States are known as Provincial
currants or American staple, and are not considered the best quality;
they are grown principally in Trifylla and Pylia and are shipped from
the ports Zante and Patras. Some come also from Vostizza, Catacolo,
Kalamata, Nauplia and Cephalonia. The Kalamata currants are inferior and
are mostly exported to France for brandy and wine making. The choicest
currants are those grown in Zante, and there known as “Cascalina.” They
go mostly to England, while the other products of the islands go to
Belgium, Holland and Northern Germany.
_Currants in California._--California has so far not cut any figure as a
currant-producing country, not because the currants will not grow here,
but because no one has ever seriously engaged in their culture. Currant
grapevines are scattered all over the State; but, to our knowledge, no
plantations are larger than an acre or two. In Fresno, a few acres of
currants are found in the Mirabelle Vineyard east of town, and a few
hundred vines are also grown on the Raisina Vineyard in the Central
Colony. Outside of these we know of only scattered vines. These currants
are all of the white variety, which is considered inferior to the black
currant of Zante and the mainland of Greece. When dried, they produce a
most beautiful semi-transparent raisin, entirely seedless, with a very
thin skin and of very fine flavor. The yield, however, has from some
cause or other not been equal to expectations, and, the price of
currants being lower than that of other raisins, the former has not been
considered as profitable as the Muscatels. Until we import the true
black currant from Zante and find the most suitable locality to grow
them, it is not likely that currant culture will make much headway in
this country. We have, however, no doubt that, with our various
climates, many places will be found in California where the currant will
yield enough to pay, provided our raisinmen will be satisfied with a
reasonable profit.