122 GRAFT AGE. 



The wounds must now be covered with wax. Fig. 126 

 illustrates a stub after the covering has been applied. If the 

 grafting is done in early spring, when the weather is cold, the 

 wax will have to be applied with a brush. The wax is 

 melted in a glue-pot, which is carried into the tree. But if 

 the weather is warm enough to soften the wax, it should be 

 applied with the hands. The hands are first 

 greased to prevent the wax from sticking. The 

 two side or vertical portions are applied first. 

 The end of the mass of wax in the hand is flat- 

 tened into a thin portion about a half inch wide. 

 This portion is then laid over the lower bud of the 

 cion and held there by the thumb of the other 

 hand, while the wax is drawn downwards over the 

 cleft, being pressed down firmly upon the bark by 

 the thumb of the first hand. The wax gradually 

 tails out until it breaks off just below the lowest 

 point of the cleft. The flattened upper part is 

 then wrapped around the cion upon either side, 

 completely and tightly encircling it. A simple 

 deft wrapping of the wax about the cion makes a 

 tighter joint than can be secured in twice the time 

 by any method of pinching it into place. Another 

 portion of wax is now flattened and applied over 

 the end of the stub. Most grafters apply a bit of 

 wax to the tops of the cion also. All the wounds 

 must be covered securely. 



The top-grafting of large trees is an important 

 u^(^A) ed operation, and there are many men who make it 

 a business. These men usually charge by the stub 

 and warrant, the warrant meaning that one cion of the stub 

 must be alive when the counting is done late in summer. 

 From two to three cents a stub is a common price. A good 

 grafter in good "setting " can graft from 400 to 800 stubs a 

 day and wax them himself. Much depends upon the size 

 of the trees, their shape, and the amount of pruning which 

 must be done before the grafter can work in them handily. 



