APIM.K GROWING IN CALIFORNIA. 61 



each side, and enough must In- used to heal the stub entirely around, or 

 else drying out and the death of parts not Fed hy the downward flow 

 of sap from the leaves of tin* scion will take place, weakening, it' not 

 eventually killing, the stub and its graft. 



.Many experienced grafters prefer to leave a considerable portion of 

 the top of old trees for one or two seasons after grafting. This is 

 undoubtedly a u r ood practice, but such should not be left long enough 

 to interfere with the growth of the grafts. 



Aphis are very often exceedingly destructive to young grafts and 

 are should be taken to control them by means of sprays before they 

 bring about permanent injury. 



GRAFTING WAXES. 



A good grafting wax being one of the requisites for successful graft- 

 ing, the following, copied from "Fruit Growing in Arid Regions, " by 

 Paddock and Whipple, is given: 



" * * * There are the waxes applied warm with a brush and those applied cold, the 

 heat of the hands being sufficient to make them pliable. With the first it is neces- 

 sary to hav- special equipment to keep the wax melted in the field, and this generally 

 limits its use to a fe\v professional grafters who are prepared to use it. The cold 

 waxes are prepared for use by melting together the ingredients, pouring the melted 

 material in cold water, and pulling it like taffy until it becomes a buff color. It can 

 be kept from season to season by immersing it in water. The common formula given 

 for the preparation of this wax is four pounds of resin, two pounds of beeswax, and 

 one pound of tallow. Paraffin may be substituted for the beeswax in this formula; 

 although it seems that the resulting wax is hardly as durable, it serves the purpose 

 very well. By increasing the amount of resin in the above formula to six pounds, it 

 makes a very good hard wax for warm application. Another good wax to be applied 

 warm is prepared by melting together three pounds of resin, one pound of beeswax 

 and one pint of raw linseed oil." 



