132 Science of Plant Life 



This means that they will grow erect instead of horizontally 

 and will take the place of the main stem. 



Grafting and budding. In the propagation of many 

 varieties of fruit trees it has been found that seeds are not 

 satisfactory. Most of our cultivated fruit trees are so highly 

 variable that their seedlings are not like the parent plants 

 in quality of fruit. Horticulturists long ago learned to over- 

 come this difficulty by grafting a twig from the desired variety 

 of tree on a seedling of a similar tree. The graf ted-in branch 

 then becomes the top of the tree, and the fruit it bears is like 

 that of the tree from which it came. 



In grafting, the plant that furnishes the root is called the 

 stock. The twig that is attached to it is called the cion (Fig. 

 76). In cleft grafting, the top of the stock is cut off. The 

 stock is then split and two cions with chisel-shaped ends are 

 placed in the cleft, one on either side, so that the cambium of the 

 cion is in close contact with the cambium of the stock. The wound 

 is covered with wax to prevent the drying out of the tissues. 

 If the cambium tissues are in perfect contact, they will soon 

 unite. New tissue will grow under the wax and finally cover 

 the wound. If both cions grow, the weaker one is removed. 



Whip grafting is the common method of uniting cions to 

 small seedlings. Usually this is done at or below the surface 

 of the soil. Both cion and stock are cut obliquely, and each 

 is split. The upper half of the oblique end of the cion is 

 pushed into the cleft of the stock and is bound firmly in pi ace 

 with raffia or twine (Fig. 76). Again, the success of the graft 

 depends upon the contact between the cambium of the cion and 

 the cambium of the stock. 



In budding, a T-shaped cut is made on the side of the stock, 

 through the cortex, down to the cambium. A bud from a 



