THE ALMOND. 25 



merely a small one-bladed pocket knife with a thin 

 blade, round at the end. The cutting portion extends 

 about one-third around the end of the blade and two- 

 thirds of its length, leaving the lower part dull. Al- 

 though this form of budding knife has been in constant 

 use in some of the older nurseries in this country for 

 nearly a century, it does not appear to have been manu- 

 factured for the general trade, but only on special orders 

 for nurserymen. It is so simple a knife, however, that 

 with a little grinding almost any small one-bladed pocket 

 knife can be transformed into one of these handy bud- 

 ding knives. The rounded end of the blade is used for 

 lifting the bark, and for rapid work it is far more con- 

 venient than any form of knife that must be reversed in 

 the hand every time a bud is inserted. In addition, a 

 polished bit of steel is smoother and far less likely to 

 lacerate the alburnous matter between the bark and 

 wood than the best piece of bone or ivory. It may be 

 said, however, that it is immaterial what form of knife 

 is employed, provided it has a keen edge and is dexter- 

 ously used. 



The material most commonly used in times past for 

 tying in the bud is the inner bark of the linden or bass- 

 wood tree, usually called bass, and always to be pro- 

 cured in the form of mats, or as prepared from our 

 indigenous bass woods and kept on sale at the seed stores. 

 Recently, however, another excellent tying material has 

 come into use, known in the trade as raffia or roffia. It is 

 the cuticle of the Jupati palms. One species (Raphia 

 tcBcligera) is a native of the lower valley of the Amazon 

 and Orinoco, and another (R. Ruffia) of Madagascar and 

 adjacent islands. Raffia is somewhat softer and more 

 pliable than the ordinary bass, although it does not hold 

 its form quite as well ; but it is so cheap, soft and strong, 

 that it has become very popular, and is extensively used 

 for budding and many other purposes. But if none of 



