96 



BUDDING AND GRAFTING 



September. In some parts of the South, however, budding 

 is done in June and is then known as June budding. 



Cutting of the Bud. The cutting of the 

 bud must be done with great precision. A 

 sharp, thin-bladed knife, of which there are 

 several styles on the market, is to be pre- 

 ferred. Select a budding knife made of the 

 best steel, and one that has a circular cut- 

 ting end. The curved end of the knife is 

 essential for making the incision in the stock. 

 In some budding knives the handle runs to 

 a thin scalpel at the end, and this part is 

 designated for the lifting of the bark on the 

 stock. 



The bud is cut about an inch in length. 

 In the shield or the prong bud, the budder 

 can either cut up or down on the stock. The 

 cutting is determined by the inclination of 

 the person doing the budding, although the 

 upward cut is preferable. In removing the 

 bud there is usually a small bit of wood 

 that is taken off with it, especially in shield 

 and prong budding. There is some differ- 

 ence of opinion as to whether or not this 

 wood is injurious to the subsequent growth 

 of the plant. Where there is a large amount 

 of wood left on the bud it should be removed, 

 but where only a thin piece exists it can 

 remain. The greatest disadvantage of hav- 

 ing a small piece of wood attached to the bud 

 is that the wood interposes a foreign body 

 between the two healing surfaces. In other 

 forms of budding no wood should be per- 

 mitted to remain on the bud. The edges of 

 all buds must be cut even and smooth and 

 not left ragged or broken. 



Shield Bud. Shield budding is perhaps 

 the most important kind of budding. It is 

 the form most often practised. It takes its 

 name from the shield-like shape of the por- 



FIG. 35. A 

 bud-stick, show- 

 ing the method 

 of cutting the 

 buds. 



