558 Journal of Agricultuii', Victoria. [10 Sept., 1917. 



above the surface level is the most convenient height ; if higher, an 

 inconveniently large mound will be required. If bleeding be not exces- 

 sive, the stock may be finally cut off at the moment of grafting. 



The final section must be made with care; in the case of a prelimi- 

 nary shortening, all that is necessary is to avoid cutting too low down. 

 The final cut may be made with knife, secateur, or saw ; a knife is best, 

 but a secateur is more convenient, and provided it be sufficiently sharp, 

 it will properly serve the purpose. Select a nice, straight side of the 

 stem where the scion can be so placed that its cambium sections and 

 those of the stock may coincide exactly. Usually one side of the young 

 vine will fulfil this condition better tlian another; twisty, curved surfaces 

 rarely result in a good graft. Where choice is possible, this spot should 

 be so selected that, after the graft is completed, the scion buds will point 

 in the direction of the trellising wires, and not ati right angles to them. 



The secateur must be used horizontally, and with blade below and 

 jaw above. The blade (not the jaw) must be applied to the side where 

 the scion will be inserted. These precautions will minimize injury to 

 the cambium layer which, when the vine is well in sap, as it should be 

 for successful grafting, is soft, gelatinous, and easily broken, as is shown 

 by the facility with which bark can be separated from wood at this time. 

 Cambium is a layer or tissue, and not a fluid, as was once thought. The 

 less this vitally-important issue is damaged, the better are the prospects 

 for callus formation. If the stock be a very large one, a saw may be 

 used. It should be fine-toothed, and the cut should be trimmed or re- 

 freshed with a sharp knife. 



Making the Cleft. 



This can best be done with a sharp knife; for very large stocks a 

 chisel is generally used. For stocks of the size usual when field grafting, 

 a razor blade fitted into a stiff, wooden handle will be found convenient; 

 the back being broader than that of a knife blade, is less severe on the 

 hand of the operator, when a large number of grafts have to be executed. 



The cleft may be diametrical or oblique; in other words, through 

 the pith or to one side of it. In the latter case the scion must be 

 trimmed accordingly. The stem of the stock is seldom a true cylinder, 

 in which case its section would be circular. As a matter of fact, it is 

 usually more or less irregular ; a skilful grafter will often take advan- 

 tage of this fact to ensure an exact fit. 



It is essential to avoid splitting the stock any deeper than the point to 

 which the apex of the scion will penetrate; nothing is more fatal to 

 success than a deep split, in which the scion is practically hanging, and 

 only in contact with the sides of the cleft at the very top. To avoid 

 splitting too deeply, advantage can often be taien of a knot, so that the 

 lump of twisted fibres which here usually occurs, will constitute the 

 bottom of the cleft. This is not always possible, and the absent knot 

 may be artificially replaced by a clove hitch made with a piece of 

 twine — bagging twine if the stock be small, binder twine if stouter — the 

 two ends should be left sufficiently long to bind and consolidate the 

 graft after the scion has been fitted in place. 



The cleft should be a true cut, rather than a split, merely following 

 the fibres of the wood. In stock varieties with straight-grained wood, 

 the difference between the two is slight, but some stocks have twisted or 

 wavy fibres, and in connexion with these care is necessary. The cleft 



