296 [Senate 



till spring, the seeds may be kept in the meantime exposed to the 

 weather, in a box mixed with clean sand. After the young trees are 

 up, they are to be thinned to three or four inches &part, to prevent 

 diminished growth from crowding; and kept well hoed through the 

 summer. They may be budded the succeeding summer ; or if trans- 

 planted the first spring, as is usually done for convenience, they may 

 be budded the second summer after the operation, or grafted the se- 

 cond spring- 



Budding is much more easily performed, and with less skill than 

 grafting ; I have never found any difficulty in learning an ingenious 

 boy to do it well in fifteen minutes. But the great requisite of suc- 

 cess is a good, rapidly growing, thrifty stock ; and the performance 

 of the work in the midst of the growing season, generally in this 

 State about the end of 7th month (July) and beginning of 8th month 

 (August,) is essential. A very sharp knife, with a broad flat blade, 

 so as to shave the bud off smoothly from the twigy to enable it to lie 

 closely on the denuded stock, is also of importance. The removal of 

 the small portion of wood beneath the bud on the inserted piece, I 

 have never found attended with any benefit, but always of course 

 with a waste of time and labor. 



Grafting may be performed in two or three different ways 'y one 

 of which is, root-grafting, done by taking up the young stocks when 

 of the diameter of a large goose-quill, or larger, trimming the roots, 

 cutting off the stem, grafting it by the whip method, and setting it 

 out again by dibbling. Trees so grafted are often set out without the 

 application of wax ; but a small plaster, quickly rolled round, is al- 

 ways useful, often saving many grafts, even though the place of junc- 

 tion may be set, as usual, three or four inches below the surface. 



Other grafting is performed on the stock as it stands in the ground, 

 by whip or by cleft grafting. 



The great leading requisite in successful grafting is to have a per- 

 fect coincidence between the stock and graft, at the division line be- 

 tween the bark and wood. But as this cannot always be closely seen 

 with the eye, it is most convenient in practice, to cut each, so that 

 this line in one may cross at an exceedingly oblique angle the line in 

 the other ; thus a coincidence at one place will be certain. Among 

 other requisites, are, good firm grafts, which have been neither water- 

 soaked nor dried ; very sharp tools ; a close and firm fit between the 



