THE kursp:ry. 17 



'ri:iiisplantiii<;- to the iiursciy should be done wlieii the scedlinj^'s are 

 incheri to ii foot hi,uh. After this time tiie taproot (sec li*^-. 1,/') 

 will have formed and tlie transphintino- will distiiil) this and prevent 

 it f rom ^-rowing to the lar^e size that it would attain if the seedling 

 were not removed. 



For transplanting, rainy weather should he chosen; otherwise much 

 waterino- will ])e neeessarv or manv trees will l»e lost. From the 

 nurseryman's point of view the planting in a seed bed seems unneces- 

 sary, but seeds planted in a nursery produce trees with large taproots 

 and few tibrous roots; this is especially the case on hmd that is more 

 or h^ss sandy. 



In the nurser}^ the rows should be from 4 to feet apart and the 

 trees set about a foot apart in the row. By thorough cultivation and 

 generous fertilizing an abundance of tibrous roots will be produced, 

 and if the nursery is located on moist land most of the trees will pro- 

 duce many branched roots and very few large roots. 



( ri,TIVATI()V IN THE NCKSKIJY. 



After planting in the nursery, cultivation should be thorough and 

 frequent. The implements should not be permitted to go deejdy iido 

 the soil if it is sandy, ])ut in marl or heavy lands cultivation should l)e 

 as deep as is practicable. 



BUDDING. 



There have been many and varying reports regarding the possibility 

 of budding and grafting the avocado. A few j'ears ago it was thought 

 impossible to bud it at all. More recently statements have been 

 made that 90 to 100 per cent of the buds had "taken.'' These reports 

 when investigated have been only partiall}' verified, since a large per- 

 centage of the buds that take fail to develop. In the avocado there 

 seems to ])e no difficulty in making the buds take, but there is con 

 sideral)le difficulty in making them start. The buds placed in a vigor- 

 ous stock are frequently grown over, thus obliterating the bud.' Or 

 again, the stock on being lopped to induce the bud to start often dies 

 back to below the l)ud. Experience indicates that budding at or near 

 the crown is preferable to top-working. 



The difficulty is not with budding but wdth the want of experience 

 up to the present time. The nurser^nnen do not fully understand the 

 time and manner best suited for budding their stock. Some buds 

 respond promptly, while others are verv dilatory about starting and 

 ma}" finally fail. 



Shield buds (fig. 2) inserted in the spring wdien the bark slips well 

 and before the first flush, usually take well and make an excellent 

 growth. It is very important in the work of budding that the stock 

 and scion l)e in as perfect condition as possible. (See rigs. 3 and 4.) 



29619— Nu. 61—04 2 



