26O PLANT PROPAGATION 



drawn and the other buds treated in the same way until 

 all that are fit for budding have been cut but left attached 

 to the twigs. The bud sticks are then usually dipped in 

 water, wrapped in wet cloth and taken to the nursery row 

 for' budding. Many operators prefer to cut the buds 

 fresh as they are needed, because there is less risk of 

 drying. The chief advantages of the plan outlined are 

 that it saves time, and less high-priced labor than that of 

 the actual budders can do the work. The buds as needed 

 are cut from the bud stick with a single motion. 



For years budders have disagreed as to the advisability 

 of removing the little chip of wood beneath the bark of 

 the bud as cut from the bud stick. No experiments seem 

 to have been tried to prove its use or harm. Many 

 budders pry it out with the tip of the knife blade or by 

 twisting the stick as the bud is being cut. No difference 

 is apparent in the resulting trees whether or not this 

 wood is removed. It would seem that the wood might 

 help to hold moisture until the bud has united with the 

 stock, but that if removed the cambium layers would 

 grow together more quickly. If the bud is cut thick, 

 the older parts of the wood doubtless do not unite, though 

 the younger parts probably do ; so it may be well to cut 

 at least this dense part. 



344. Budding knives are of many styles, and operators 

 have their pronounced preferences, but probably the one 

 most used in the big commercial nurseries for field work 

 is in Fig. 204. It costs about $1.75 by the dozen. The 

 budding knife should be made of the finest steel, have a 

 thin blade about two inches long; the cutting edge, kept 

 razor sharp, should extend from front to back in a quarter 

 circle. The blade should be set in a light, convenient 

 handle, which may be stationary or slotted to receive it. 

 The straight part of the blade is used for general pur- 

 poses, such as bud cutting, and the curved end for making 

 incisions in stocks. Many budding knife handles extend 

 into a thin bone, ivory or celluloid, spatula-shaped blade 



