28 THE APPLE CULTURIST. 



A hundred years ago, pomologists seldom thought of 

 propagating apple-trees by root-grafting. When they ate 

 a good apple, their first idea was to plant the seed. By this 

 practice, and by not cutting off the tap-roots, they obtained 

 trees that were bountifully productive for a long time. The 

 bare fact that pomologists have had occasion to feel assured 

 that root-grafted trees are sometimes not so productive as 

 seedling stocks, should be sufficient reason for abandoning 

 entirely that manner of propagation. 



This question has been discussed extensively in Illinois ; 

 and many intelligent pomologists would not accept root- 

 grafted trees as a gratuity. One gentleman stated at the 

 pomological convention that he had made observations for 

 several years, and had come to the conclusion that, for that 

 region, trees worked standard high are better worth a dol- 

 lar a tree than such as are root-grafted with a dollar as a 

 gratuity. He had found such shy bearers as Early Harvest, 

 Pryor's Red, etc., to bear well when worked on stocks. The 

 rule had been found general, with some exceptions. He 

 had found budded trees to bear good crops in six to eight 

 years. He mentioned cases where the Swaar and Baldwin, 

 when root-grafted, had not borne in fifteen years. Other 

 trees, budded from good bearers, had borne good crops in 

 seven years. He had never found a productive Rhode 

 Island Greening tree, when root-grafted, at any age ; but 

 stock-grafted trees were always productive, when old enough 

 for bearing. 



Side or Summer-grafting. This mode of grafting is 

 known to very few persons ; and yet it is superior to every 

 other method. It is in a large degree free from the objec- 

 tions urged against cleft-grafting, and is so simple and easi- 

 ly executed, that the merest novice, armed with a knife, 

 string, grafting-wax, and a piece of soap, can graft a tree as 

 well as the professional propagator. 



