162 HORTICULTURE, FORESTRY, FLORICULTURE 



use of stocks, a seedling being required for each tree, while, with the 

 piece-root system of grafting, two, three, or more stocks can be made 

 from a single seedling. 



The operation of budding is simple and can be done with great 

 speed by expert budders. The expense of the operation is, therefore, 

 not more than that of whip grafting, although the work has usually 

 to be done in July, August, or early September. The usual plan is 

 for a man to set the buds and a boy to follow closely and do the tying. 



The Bud. The bud should be taken from wood of the present 

 season's growth. Since the work of budding is done during the sea- 

 son of active growth, the bud sticks are prepared so that the petiole 

 or stem of each leaf is left attached to serve as a handle to aid in push- 

 ing the bud home when inserting it beneath the bark of the stock. 

 This is what is usually called a shield bud and is cut so that a small 

 portion of the woody tissue of the branch is removed with the bud. 



The Stock. The stock for budding should be at least as thick 

 as the ordinary lead pencil. With the apple and pear a second sea- 

 son's growth will be necessary to develop this size, while with the 

 peach a single season will suffice ; hence peach stocks can be budded 

 the same season the pits are planted. Consequently the peach is left 

 until as late in the season as is practicable in order to obtain stocks of 

 suitable size. 



The Operation. The height at which buds are inserted varies 

 with the operator. In general, the nearer the ground the better. The 

 cut for the reception of the bud is made in the shape of a letter T. 

 Usually the crosscut is not quite at right angles with the body of the 

 tree, and the stem to the T starts at the crosscut and extends toward 

 the root for an inch or more. The flaps of bark caused by the inter- 

 section of the two cuts are slightly loosened with the ivory heel of 

 the budding knife, and the bud, grasped by the leaf stem as a handle, 

 is placed under the flaps and firmly pushed in place until its cut sur- 

 face is entirely in contact with the peeled body of the stock. A liga- 

 ture is then tightly drawn about, above and below the bud, to hold it 

 in place until a union shall be formed. Bands of raffia about 8 or 10 

 inches long make a most convenient tying material. As soon as the 

 buds have united with the stock the ligature should be cut in order 

 to prevent girdling the stock. This done, the operation is complete 

 until the following spring, when all the trees in which the buds have 

 "taken" should have the top cut off just above the bud. 



Budding and Grafting Compared. The removal of the top 

 forces the entire strength of the root into the bud, and since the root 

 itself has not been disturbed by transplanting a more vigorous growth 

 usually results from the bud than from scions in whip or crown graft- 

 ing. The one objection to budding is that it causes an unsightly 

 crook in the body of the tree unless the tree is planted deeply enough 

 in the orchard to cover the deformity. In rigorous climates, where 

 trees upon tender roots are likely to suffer from severe winters, a bud 

 of a hardy sort upon a tender root is no hardier than the root, because 

 budding leaves a portion of the stock exposed above the surface of the 

 soil and thus precludes the possibility of the development of roots 



