NOTES AND COMMENTS. 



97 



am after all the good information I can get upon 

 fruit growing. 



We do not recomrpend Crown Grafting 

 as the best method or renewing- old trees, but 

 only as an easy and fairly successful meth- 

 od which any novice may try with fairly 

 good results. 



The cuts which we give show clearly how 

 it is done. A fairly large limb is smoothly 

 cut off well back to the trunk (Fig. 2546 a), 

 or in some cases an upright trunk is cut off 

 leaving a few limbs below the cut. Cions 

 from bearing trees, of the required variety, 

 are cut in advance and kept in a cool place till 

 required so that they may not push their buds 

 before setting. These cions are cut with a 

 long, smooth, sloping cut from one side only, 

 and pushed down under the bark, which may 

 first be partly raised with a knife. From 

 two to six are set to a cut according to the 

 size of the limb {be). Grafting wax need not 

 be used for this primitive method, provided 

 mud of some clayey texture can be secured. 

 To hold the grafting clay in place wrap the 

 part with a strip of stiff paper about four 

 inches wide, and tie with a string, leaving 

 the edges to project about an inch above the 

 cut. This will form a basin to hold the 

 clay. We have tried this quite often with 

 perfect success. 



CLEFT GRAFTING. 



FOR a first-class job, however we would 

 much prefer the more scientific meth- 

 od of Cleft grafting. It takes more time 

 because you must work upon the smaller 

 and outer limbs of younger growth, and a 

 great many more cuts must be made to 

 transform a tree to a new variety. Indeed 

 it is usual to do a part of the tree only in a 

 single season, and complete the job the 

 following year, when any failures can be re- 

 grafted. These remarks of course apply to 

 large trees, but in case of small trees the 

 whole top may be cut off at the height de- 

 sired for the top, and the scion inserted by 



what is called whip grafting, which is, well 

 shown in the accompanying cut from Farm 

 and Home, from which also we take the 

 following details : 



The sloping cut or 

 tongue must be fitted in 

 a little more carefully, 

 however, and the junc- 

 ture wrapped with cloth 

 or covered with grafting 

 wax. If the stocks are 

 of moderate size, a cloth 

 is preferable. This is 

 called whip grafting. 

 For larger trees and for 

 branches, say an inch in 

 diameter and upward, 

 cleft grafting is prac- 

 tised. The branch is cut 

 or sawed off ; the lower 

 end of the scion is cut 

 into the form of a wedge 

 with a bud at the be- 

 ginning of the cut 

 where it rests upon the 

 stalk. This bud has- 

 hastens the union the 

 same as a bud down 

 in the earth in root 

 grafting facilitates the 

 growth of roots. The 

 outer edge of the 

 wedge-shaped cuts 

 should be thicker than 

 the inner. The stalk 

 is split on one end by 

 laying a chisel on the 

 cut surface and strik- 

 ing lightly with a mal- 

 let. The split is kept 

 open with a knife or 

 chisel until the scion 

 is inserted. Two or 

 three scions may be 

 put in each branch, so if a part of them die 

 some still remain. If all grow, cut off all 



Fig. 2547. Cleft 

 Grafting. 



Fig I, the stock cut hori- 

 zontal across at A. Fig. 2, 

 the same with two scions, A 

 and B, inserted. 



Fig. 2548. Splice or 

 Whip Grafting. 



Fig. I, scion with sloping cut 

 on ore side like a wrdge; A, 

 bud at the shoulder; B, section 

 showing shape of wei^e. Fig. 

 2, the stock cut and split ; A, the 

 sloping cut ; B, horizontal cut. 

 Fig. 3, the scion inserted in the 

 stock. 



