_General Notes._--It is not my intention to here describe the various
tools used in the vineyard so minutely that they can be made after the
description, but simply to enumerate and call attention to them in order
that as little repetition as necessary may be made. Every local
blacksmith or mechanic invents, improves or patents vineyard tools of
every description, and almost every year sees new tools introduced and
older ones discarded. Still a few of these tools have become standard,
and modifications of them are not always improvements.
_The Sheep’s-foot._--This is a very useful tool in planting grape
cuttings. It consists of a round rod of three-eighths-inch iron and
about three and one-half feet long, furnished with a cross handle at the
upper end. The lower end is very slightly flattened out and split to a
depth of one and one-half inches, the cleft thus formed being a little
wider at the point of the bar, while the interior angle of the cleft
should be rounded in order that the cutting may not be cut. The
sheep’s-foot is used in very soft ground only, where it can be pushed
down readily. In planting, the lower joint of the cutting is grasped by
the cleft in the rod, and both are pushed down together to the required
depth. A twist is then given the handle, so as to get the rod loose from
the cutting. The rod is then pulled up, and a tamp with the foot sets
the ground solid round the cutting. Care should be taken that the
cutting is not pulled up with the rod, as it will prove fatal to the
cutting.
_The Planting Bar._--This bar is used also in loose ground free from
rocks. It consists of a flat bar of iron two and one-half inches wide,
from three-eighths to one-half inch thick and three and one-half feet
long, and is furnished at the upper end with a handle. In using this
bar, it is first pushed in the ground, and a hole is made for the
cutting. The cutting is then pushed down into the hole, the bar inserted
alongside of it and pressed forward, in order to fill the hole and set
the soil solid around the cutting.
_The Dibble._--This tool is simply a hard piece of oakwood, with a
curved handle and pointed. It is a most useful instrument when the vines
are being pruned. By means of it the soil is scraped off from around the
trunk of the vine, to enable the pruner to cut off the suckers as close
to the trunk as possible. Every pruner should be furnished with a
dibble.
_Planting Chains._--These are best made of twisted wire, such as is used
for clothes lines. Lines made of cotton or hemp are apt to stretch when
dry, and shrink when wet. Copper wires are inserted to mark the
distances at which the vines should be planted.
_Spades._--Spades are often used for planting. Long-handled spades are
more useful than those with short handles.
_Hoes._--Besides the common, heavy hoes, very useful hoes can be made of
old shovels which are too worn to be of account as such. New handles are
set on the shovel blades at a right or sharp angle, thus transforming
them into veritable hoes. With these tools much more work can be
accomplished than with the common, manufactured hoe, which never cuts
well. The large, flat-faced Italian hoe imported to this country from
Italy is a most admirable instrument when planting cuttings in nursery
rows. In fact it is then indispensable.
_Plows._--Of plows, heavy double plows for two horses are used for
plowing in the center between the rows, and smaller plows for plowing
closer to the vines. As these can be had everywhere, and as every grower
has his own preferences, no description of them is required.
_Cultivators._--These are indispensable in the vineyard, and various
models are in use. The common, diamond-shovel cultivator for both one
and two horses is indispensable in every vineyard. The larger one of
these may be greatly improved by affixing to the posterior shovels a
cutter-bar, which should stand horizontal and on a level with the center
of the posterior shovels.
_Randel Disc Cultivators._--These are useful in ground that has baked
before the lately planted cuttings have begun to bud. They seldom cut or
injure any of the cuttings, and the whole field may be gone over
regardless of rows or cuttings.
_The Ash Trough._--The ash trough consists of a long trough on wheels,
all made of galvanized iron, and furnished with numerous perforated
holes. It is drawn by two or more horses through the vineyard, and the
cuttings are burned in it as it goes along, and the ashes are scattered
over the soil. As yet this trough is only used in a few of the largest
vineyards, but when perfected will be useful everywhere, as by its aid
the ashes may be saved for the vines instead of being wasted as is now
so often the case.
_Sulphuring Cans or Bellows._--These are of various shapes and patterns.
The cans have been superseded by the simple little burlap bag, which
does the same or better work. The bellows are similar to common bellows,
but are furnished with a distributing nozzle and with an air opening
through which the sulphur can be poured.
_The Cutter-sled._--This is simply a sled four feet long by two and a
half feet wide or more, under which has been fixed a horizontal bar of
iron in the shape of a shallow U. It is used in the vineyard after the
plowing and cultivation is finished, and when it is of importance to
kill the few remaining weeds. The driver stands on the sled, which is
pulled by one or two horses. It cuts all the weeds below the soil, and
is a most effective and useful tool.
_Vineyard Trucks._--These useful trucks are California inventions, and
of the greatest importance to the grower. They are now made of various
sizes, but should never be over four feet wide, while three feet is even
better, and their length should not exceed six feet. They are made to
turn readily anywhere by having the front wheels or wheel movable,
independently of the balance of the truck. By the aid of these trucks
the grower can use horse labor in distributing his boxes and trays in
the vineyard, even where the vines are planted so close that ordinary
wagons cannot pass. The vineyard truck is now used in all Fresno
vineyards, and is considered almost indispensable. The first truck ever
made for this purpose was designed and invented by J. T. Goodman of
Fresno.
_Shears._--These should be of the very best make of soft steel, and
furnished with double springs. So far no good pruning shears are
manufactured in this country, the best make coming from Switzerland, and
retailed here at $3.00 per pair. It pays any grower to buy the best
shears, as inferior ones not only last but a short time, but also do
poor and slow work, and in the long run cost more than the best and most
expensive make. With a good pair a pruner can in a day cut fifty per
cent more than with a poor pair, and from ten to twenty-five per cent
more than with an ordinary pair. It therefore can be readily seen how
the extra price can be saved in the first day or two. Such fine shears
should be handled and cared for very much like a razor. They should
never be ground on a revolving stone, but only honed with oil on a fine
hone. When the season is over they should be oiled, looked over and laid
away. Large shears with wooden handles are not needed for Muscat vines.
The best size shear is the medium size, which can be used with one
hand.