GRAFTING. 



109 



standard of excellence in houses and furni- 

 ture in town, (and which are, perhaps, re- 

 ally excellent there,) and make a pilgrim- 

 age of inspection to the best country hou- 

 ses, villas and cottages, with their grounds, 

 before he lays a stone in his foundation 



walls, or marks a curve of his walks. If 

 he does this, he will be certain to open his 

 eyes to the fact, that, though there are good 

 models in town, for town life, there are 

 far better model's in the country, for coun- 

 try life. 



ON ROOT-GRAFTING AND GRAFTING GENERALLY. 



BV H. E. HOOKER, 



Mr. Dow t ning — As there seems to be some 

 difference of opinion, among your corres- 

 pondents, in regard to the propriety of root- 

 grafting fruit trees, especially apples, and 

 as the current of opinion, so far expressed, 

 has been in favor of budded, or seedling 

 (that is, not worked) trees, a few words in 

 extenuation of the practice will, I think, be 

 appropriate from one who is engaged in 

 this business, which seems so obnoxious to 

 some. 



One of the first questions which meets 

 us, is, whether any tree or plant, except a 

 seedling, is admissible in the orchard, gar- 

 den or fruit yard ? 



Now it seems to me that no sensible 

 man will deny that one of the greatest 

 benefits which are derived from the gar- 

 dener's skill, is through multiplying indi- 

 vidual plants, as varieties of the same class 

 or species, by means of layers, cuttings, 

 eyes, sprouts, and grafts or buds. 



The practice of all except the most pri- 

 mitive cultivators, shows that this is unde- 

 niable ; for no man objects to a plant or 

 tree, of a kind which he wishes to obtain, 

 because it is not raised from seed ; and he 

 has good reason, when he sees it perfect 

 in all its parts, to expect it to be as long 

 lived, and as useful, as the original parent 

 which was derived from seed. No method 

 of propagation can be injurious to the 



ROCHESTER, N. Y. 



health or longevity of a tree, which pro- 

 duces the plant perfect in all its parts, — a 

 fact which is abundantly proved by time 

 and trial, as in the case of grapes, currants, 

 willows, poplars, &c. &c. This fact also 

 shows, that in regard to many plants and 

 trees, there is no particular spot in the tree 

 where vitality is stored up, unless it be in 

 the bud itself. This is still further evi- 

 dent, in cases where we see fine perfect 

 plants raised from bits of roots, as in rasp- 

 berries ; and even apple and pear trees 

 may be produced in the same way. 



The next question is as to the propriety 

 of transferring one variety of a species to 

 another stock of the same species, but of a 

 different variety. This opens a wide field, 

 and one which Iconfess I am quite unable 

 to compass, and where abundant room 

 remains for interesting experiment and 

 investigation ; but enough has been done 

 to prove that varieties may be grafted or 

 budded upon other varieties of the same or 

 even a different species, without serious in- 

 jury. Still, during these experiments, dif- 

 ferences do appear, as every cultivator has 

 observed ; and even in the use of stocks of 

 the same species, we find some individu- 

 als are improved, a greater number are in- 

 jured, but in most cases the difference is 

 scarcely perceptible between the grafted 

 or budded tree and the original plant. It 



