HORTICULTURE 295 



for grafting, and the grafts put in at the neck of the roots, just below 

 the surface of the ground. 



The ordinary Wedge-graft is usually used, and the union should 

 be carefully tied up and covered with grafting wax. The soil is then 

 piled up around the graft until only two eyes are exposed. If the 

 seedlings are large and have thick bark they may be budded in the 

 stem just above the ground. 



Transplanting, and Care of Young Trees. It is customary in 

 most olive-growing countries to keep the young trees in the nursery 

 for several years from four to- twelve and even fourteen years, the 

 average being about seven. This long sojourn in the nursery has 

 two objects: First, as the olive can be transplanted at almost any 

 age, the older trees run less risk of failing to grow than the very 

 small ones if proper cultivation or irrigation should be neglected; 

 and, second, because when large trees are put out in the orchard 

 they come into bearing several years earlier than when small ones 

 are used, and so several years of cultivation of the orchard are saved. 

 On the other hand, it should not be forgotten that the olive is no ex- 

 ception to the general rule that the younger a tree is when it is 

 planted in its permanent place, the better and stronger will be the 

 root system which it develops, and consequently the more vigorous 

 and long lived the tree. Trees two or three years old can be planted 

 out with perfect success, providing they are given careful cultivation 

 for the first few years and watered and manured when necessary. 



For the first four or five years, whether the young trees are 

 planted out or left in the nursery, great care should be taken to 

 prevent them growing into an undesirable shape. They should be 

 well staked to keep them vertical, and the lateral shoots from the 

 lower part of the stem should be removed when young, in order to 

 avoid the necessity of making large wounds later. In cutting off 

 these lateral shoots the cuts should not be made too close and the 

 leaves at their bases should be left, as they help to feed the plant 

 and protect the stem. 



Pruning. Though olive trees are grown in some districts with- 

 out pruning, there can be no doubt that intelligent pruning increases 

 the regularity, quantity, and quality of the crop. Heavy pruning 

 at intervals of several years is practiced very commonly, but results 

 in irregular bearing and renders the trees more susceptible to disease. 

 The system which gives the best results from all points of view is a 

 moderate pruning every year. Two main objects should be kept in 

 view in pruning: 1. To give the tree the most convenient form; 

 2. To cause it to produce as large a crop each year as is consistent 

 with the quality of the fruit and the health of the tree. 



For the smallest-growing varieties the tree should branch out 

 about. ^three feet from the soil, and should be given a spherical, 

 bush-like top. For the stronger and larger growers the trunk should 

 be four or five ^feet high, and the branches should grow in "goblet" 

 form. The object is to give every part of the tree, as nearly as pos- 

 sible, an equal amount of air and light, and to give it the form that 



