20 TOP-WORKING SEEDLING PECAN TREES. 



ligature is required. In budding in the spring, when the flow of sap is 

 very copious, it is well to tie in a small splinter about the size of a match 

 just below the bud to drain off the excess sap. This will save many buds 

 from being killed by souring of the sap. In two to three weeks time 

 the tie should be loosened so that the rapid growth of the stock will not 

 cause the tie to cut into the bark. Figure 15 shows a bud from which 

 the tie has been removed. 



THE MECHANICS OF PATCH BUDDING. 



After all has been said about cambium and stocks and cions and their 

 relation to each other, there are still volumes to be written on the me- 

 chanics of pecan propagation. I do not want to scare any one off from 

 trying, but if there is any plant more difficult to propagate than the 

 pecan, I have not yet found it. Even experienced propagators of gen- 

 eral nursery stock have given up pecan budding as a bad job. On the 

 other hand, a novice or "pecan crank" who is handy with tools and has 

 the patience to study out the causes ^of his failures, may acquire the 

 skill to obtain almost a perfect "live" of buds. This all goes to show 

 that extreme precision is the password in the mechanics of patch bud- 

 ding. In the first place, the knives should be of the finest quality, so 

 that they will hold a clean, fine edge. All cuts should be made with 

 accuracy and precision, so that there are no rough edges and bias cor- 

 ners. The number of living buds will, under ordinary circumstances, be 

 in exact proportion to the accuracy with which the bud patch fits the 

 place made for it on the stock. The experienced pecan budder as he 

 takes the buds off the stick can tell whether or not they will grow. If 

 he tears the bark in cutting the patch, he drops that bud and cuts 

 another; if the bud patch splits, he discards it; if his fingers touch the 

 cambium or the bud patch falls to the ground, he wastes no time with 

 it, but cuts another and another until he gets the conditions perfect. 

 There is little use in tying in any bud that does not fit perfectly. For 

 this reason it is desirable to have the budstick as near the same diameter 

 as the stock. The bud patches from thin or small cions have to be 

 stretched to fit and generally give a poor "live" ; likewise, the buds from 

 the more or less ridged portion at the top of the budstick. The transfer 

 of the bud patch should also be made quickly, so that the cambium will 

 have the shortest possible exposure to the air. 



