CHAP. IT.] HERBACEOUS GRAFTING. 85 



wood of the current year, in opposition to com- 

 mon grafting:, which is always performed with 

 firm wood, frequently of several years' growth. 

 Herbaceous grafting is now generally used for 

 trees of the pine and fir tribe, which, only a few 

 years ago, it was thought impossible to graft 

 at all. "The proper time for this kind of graft- 

 in^ is when the young pine shoots have made 

 about three parts of their growth, and are still 

 so herbaceous as to break readily between the 

 fingers, like a shoot of asparagus. The shoot 

 of "the stock used formerly to be broken off 

 about two inches below the point, and all the 

 leaves stripped off for nearly two inches more, 

 except two sheaths of leaves, which were left, 

 one on each side, close to the top. The shoot 

 of the stock was then split with a very thin 

 knife between the sheaths of leaves left; the 

 scion, having had its lower extremity prepared 

 by stripping off the leaves and cutting it into 

 the shape of a wedge, was inserted as in cleft- 

 grafting; and the parts were bound together 

 with list, or with a strip of thin woollen cloth. 

 A cone of paper was then put over the wiiole, 

 to protect it from the sun and rain, and the 

 graft was very seldom found to fail. 



Now, instead of breaking off the end of the 

 shoot, it is found to be more efficacious to make 

 the incision on the side of the stem of the stock, 

 as shown in Jig. 14. The scion is still pre- 

 pared and inserted in the same manner as be 

 fore ; and when the plant is in a pot, it is pre- 

 served as much as possible from the air, in the 

 manner which will be afterwards described when 

 speaking of La Grejfe gtoujfee. 



