CLEFT-GRAFTING. 



119 



grafter makes a cion by three strokes of the knife, one to cut 

 off the cion and two to shape it. The outer edge of the 

 wedge should be a lit- 

 tle thicker than the 

 inner one, so that the 

 stock will bind upon 

 it and hold it firm at 

 the point where the I20< cleft-grafting knife (xi. 5 ). 

 union first takes place. 



These cions are taken in late fall or winter, or very early 

 spring, and are kept in the same manner as directed on 

 pages 107 and 108. 



The stock or stub must be cut off square and smooth 

 with a sharp and preferably fine-toothed saw. If one de- 

 sires to be especially careful in the operation, the end of 

 the stub, or at least two opposite sides of it, may be 

 dressed off with a knife, so that the juncture between the 

 bark and the wood may be more easily seen. Professional 

 grafters rarely resort to this dressing, however. The stub 

 is then split to the depth of an inch and a half or two 

 inches. Various styles of grafting-knife are used to 

 split the stub. The best one is that shown in Fig. 120. 

 It is commonly made from an old file by a blacksmith. 

 The blade is curved, so that the bark of the stub is drawn 

 in when the knife is entering, thereby lessening the danger 

 of loosening the bark. Another style of knife is illustrated 

 in Fig. 121. In this tool, the cutting edge is straight, 

 and, being thinner than the other tool, it tends rather 

 to cut the stub than to split it. Upon the end of these 



knives is a wedge, about 

 4 or 5 inches long, for 

 opening the cleft. The 

 wedge is driven into the 



121. Cleft-grafting knife (x#). cleft and allowed to re- 

 main while the cions are 



being placed. If the cleft does not open wide enough to 

 allow the cions to enter, the operator bears down on the 



