HORTICULTURE 297 



proper conditions. The essential points are that the bud must be 

 taken from good healthy wood, and inserted in a vigorous shoot. 

 Most of the failures in budding result from using a shoot of low 

 vitality as a stock. In order to insure shoots of sufficient vigor to 

 start a bud, the tree which is to be budded should be pruned severely 

 the year before. If the tree is large it is advisable to cut back only 

 half the branches the first year. The following spring the pruned 

 branches will send out a number of vigorous shoots, the best of which 

 may be budded. The following winter the rest of the branches 

 should be cut back and the budding completed the second summer. 

 In this way the tree does not receive so rude a shock as if all the 

 branches were cut back the same year. 



The ordinary T-bud succeeds very well on the olive, though 

 some prefer the shield-bud. For the scion a dormant bud in the axil 

 of a leaf may be taken, as is usually done for other plants. With 

 the olive, however, twig-buds are more successful. The twig-bud 

 must be cut deeply with a sharp knife and part of the wood removed 

 before insertion in the stock. Also about two-thirds of each leaf on 

 the twig-bud should be cut off to prevent drying out by too much 

 evaporation. The bud is inserted in the usual way and tied by 

 winding a cotton string tightly around the stock, both above and 

 below the bud, so as to cover up all the cut parts. Three or four 

 weeks later the string should be removed and the stock topped. If 

 the union has been effected the bud can be left to itself, simply 

 cutting off the whole of the stock above the bud as soon as the latter 

 has developed sufficient leaves. Budding may be done at any time 

 when the sap is flowing freely, but is most successful if done in the 

 early summer or spring. If done too late the buds fail to start until 

 the following spring, and are apt to dry out. 



Gathering the Fruit. Whether olives are to be used for pickling 

 or oil-making, it is very important that they should be picked care- 

 fully and at the right time. For green pickles they should be picked 

 very soon after they obtain full size, but before they have begun to 

 color or soften. 



For ripe pickles they should be gathered at the same stage of 

 ripeness as for oil-making; that is, when they contain the maximum 

 amount of oil. This is soon after they are well colored, but before 

 they have attained the deep black which signifies over-ripeness. 

 If the olives are gathered too green the oil will be bitter ; if too ripe, 

 it will be rancid. On account of the different degrees of color in 

 different varieties of olives, it is difficult to tell from their appear- 

 ance when they should be gathered. When they can be easily shaken 

 from the tree they are ripe enough. If they commence to fall without 

 vigorous shaking they are over-ripe. For whatever purpose the olives 

 are to be used they should be carefully gathered by hand. Rakes or 

 sticks should never be used, as they bruise the fruit and break off a 

 great deal of the fruit-shoots needed for the following year. It is 

 well to sort the olives as they are being picked, separating out the 

 bruised, diseased, or under-ripe fruit. When the olives are for oil- 

 making they should be washed before being crushed or dried, unless 



