262 THE NURSERY. [MARCH 



down, drawing up the earth so that they may be covered two- 

 thirds of their length ; then lay some light litter thinly over their 

 tops to prevent their drying. If a small joint of the last year's wood 

 be taken off with the scion, it will preserve it the better ; for the old 

 wood being more compact than the new, will prevent its imbibing 

 too much moisture from the earth whilst kept there, and that can be 

 cut away when you take them up for grafting. If grafts are to be 

 carried to any considerable distance, it will be proper to pack them 

 up in earth, and surround them with damp moss, if but a small quan- 

 tity, to prevent its drying too soon. 



Always prefer stocks which were raised in the nursery from seed ; 

 next to these, those raised from layers and cuttings ; and, last of all, 

 such as were produced from suckers ; for the last will continue to 

 throw up suckers from their roots, much more abundantly than any 

 of the former, to the great annoyance of the borders, garden, or or- 

 chard, which are not only unsightly, but they also take off a great 

 part of the nourishment from the trees. 



When you intend to change the fruit of an old espalier or wall- 

 tree, always graft on fresh healthy branches, and as near the trunk 

 as such are to be found ; ten or a dozen grafts may be necessary to 

 furnish the tree, the more immediately, with the kind or kinds de- 

 sired. For a standard, six or eight scions will be sufficient to answer 

 a similar purpose, always observing to cut out the far greater part, if 

 not the whole, of the old branches, previous to grafting, and the re- 

 mainder, as the young grafts advance in growth. 



For this purpose, you must be provided, 1. With a strong knife 

 to cut off the heads of the stocks previous to the insertion of the 

 grafts. 2. With a neat, small hand- saw, for occasional use, in cut- 

 ting off the heads of some large stocks, for crown-grafting. 3. With 

 a grafting-chisel and small mallet, for clefting large stocks, for the 

 reception of the scions in cleft-grafting. 4. With a neat and very 

 sharp pruning-knife for cutting and shaping the grafts, and for 

 sloping and forming the stocks for their reception ; and 5. With a 

 quantity of new bass strings ; or, if bass cannot be had, with soft 

 woollen yarn, to tie the parts close, secure the grafts, and thereby to 

 promote their speedy union with the stocks. 



The next thing to be provided, is a quantity of grafting clay, 

 which should be prepared at least ten days previous to its being 

 wanted for use ; to be applied closely around the grafts at the places 

 of insertion into the stocks, and a little above, in order to prevent 

 the air from exhausting the sap of the scions, before they could be 

 supplied with a sufficiency from the stocks, and also to keep out wet, 

 which would greatly obstruct the uniting of the parts ; it is to be 

 made in the following manner : 



Get a quantity of strong, fat loam, in proportion to the number of 

 trees to be grafted; then take about a fourth part of fresh horse-dung, 

 free from litter, or a third part of cow-dung, it matters not which 

 you make use of; or, if you please, you may use a proportionate 

 quantity of each, mixing them, or either of them, well with the loam; 

 add to it a small quantity of hay, cut very fine, and also some salt, 

 which will prevent it from cracking or drying too fast in hot or 



