86 PEOPAGATION. 



hard to strip, and if unsuccessful, rather than waste 

 buds, I advise that the wood be left in, although this 

 approaches grafting-, and is not so good as budding. 

 Take now the leaf stalk of your bud between the finger 

 and thumb of your left hand, and with the base of 

 your budding knife raise slightly the bark at the cross, 

 cut and slide in your bud, pushing it gently downwards 

 by the leaf stalk to the base. The bud should fit well, 

 but if cut too long it can easily be cut again at the 

 cross cut. Try to keep your bud clean, sharp cut, and 

 fresh, do not let it get bent or ragged ; if the wood has 

 been hard to remove, and the base has got bent and 

 rough, lay it on the shoot again and clean-cut the 

 base. Everything depends upon a quick union, and 

 damaged bark is not going to compete with un- 

 damaged. 



Before we commence to tie in, a word of advice as 

 to standards. If your shoots are young, verging 

 rather on the green side, even when the bark is raised, 

 I would leave out the cross cut and make your longi- 

 tudinal cut longer and slide your bud in sideways ; for 

 this reason : After budding, as the branch grows, it 

 will weaken at the cross cut and often snap off, and if 

 it does not damage the bud in the parting, it will do 

 so by its loss, for the flow of sap will try to find a vent, 

 and in all probability it will start into growth the bud 

 whidh should have remained dormant until the spring. 



In tying in, commence tying from the bottom of 

 the bud and work upwards; do not cover the bud. 

 Some growers turn one end of the tie upwards, laying 

 it on the stem and wind with the other part to meet it 

 at the finish and tying off at the top. Others, starting 

 more or less from the middle of the raffia below the 

 bud, wind both ends in opposite directions and then 

 tie off at the top. I think the first method is the better, 

 if not the quicker, but as far as the amateur is con- 

 cerned, it does not matter so long as all is secure. Do 

 not tie too tight so as to impede the flow of sap, but 

 tie firmly, like a bandage which, in fact in miniature, 

 it truly is. 



