244 THE NURSERY. [MARCH. 



garden, or orchard ; 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 cions, 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 

 remainder, 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-chissel and small mallet, for clefting large stocks, 

 for the reception of the cions 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 round the grafts, at the places of in- 

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

 air from exhausting the sap of the cions, before they could be sup- 

 plied 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 propor- 

 tionate 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 parching weather ; work the whole well together, and add 

 as much water as necessary ; after which, beat and incorporate the 

 mass effectually, after the manner of mortar, and continue so to 

 work it every other day, adding a little water as it becomes dry, till 

 the time you want it for use. Be very particular, during this pe- 

 riod, riot to expose it to frost, or drying winds ; and the more ef- 

 fectually you incorporate it, the better will it answer your purpose. 

 Some people use a composition of bees-wax, rosin and turpentine, 

 melted together, to put round the grafts in the manner of clay, but 

 laid on warm and much thinner. This I conceive to be too ex- 

 pensive, and am certain, from experience, that it does not answer 

 the end a whit better, nor even so well, as the former, if properly 

 made. 



Observe, that the stocks to be grafted, if intended for dwarf- 

 trees, for espaliers or walls, must be headed down to within five or 



