1855. 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



49 



Jr., of Plymouth, cut a bushel of peach-ljlows — 

 the same, L suppose, with what are called further 

 west Sand-lakes — into eyes, and planted them on 

 good land, seeding very lightly. And from that 

 single bushel, thus divided into eyes, what, think 

 you, Mr. Editor, was the yield ? No less than 

 sevenlij-one bushels oi first-rate potatoes. I have 

 this statement from Jlr. Watson, Mr. Thomas's 

 neighbor, corroborated by the testimony of other 

 and most trust-worthy individuals. What will 

 some of our most scientific New York editors say 

 to this matter of light seeding, thus illustrated, 

 those especially who are such sticklers for plant- 

 ing the tubers ivhok ? 



And now, Mr. Editor, I have one question to 

 put to you. Can you tell me if there is any 

 v:hiie potato that is as prolific as the red or yeZ- 

 /«?w sort, or that will bear comparison with the 

 Sand-lakes? And can you inform me how the 

 Seal's Foot, State of Maine, and Dover stand 

 in regard to abundant yield ? I have never tried 

 either of them very extensively till the present 

 year. Respectfully yours, 



James Richardson, Jr. 



Kingston, June 16, 1855. 



A FEW HINTS ON BUDDING. 



A VALUABLE AND TIMELY ARTICLE. 



Budding, or inoculation, is one of the most gen- 

 eral, and, in this country, by far the most im- 

 portant method of summer propagation. This 

 operation consists in removing a bud from the 

 variety to be propagated, and inserting it on 

 another which is called the stock. Its success 

 depends upon the following conditions : In the 

 first place, there must be a certain degree of 

 affinity between the stock and the parent plant 

 from which we propose to propagate. Thus, 

 among fruit trees, the Apple, Crab, Pear, Quince, 

 Mespilus, and Mountain Ash, all belong to the 

 same natural family, and may be worked upon 

 each other. The Plum, Apricot, Nectarine, Peach 

 and Almond, form another natural division, and 

 work upon each other. The Cherry must be 

 worked upon some kind of Cherry, and Cu-^rrants 

 and Gooseberries go together. In general prac- 

 tice the Apple is worked either upon Apple 

 seedlings, vi'hich are called free stocks, or upon 

 the Doucain or Paradise, which are dwarf grow- 

 ing species, and are used for the purpose of 

 making small trees. The Pear is worked either 

 upon Pear seedlings, which are called free stocks, 

 or upon the (L)uince, to make dwarfs ; occasion- 

 ally it is worked upon the jMountain Ash and 

 Thorn. But it must be borne in mind that while 

 all varieties succeed on the Pear seedling, a cer- 

 tain nunibor fail entirely on the other stocks we 

 have named. Lists of such as succeed partic- 

 ularly well on the Quince will be found in previ- 

 ous numbers of the Horticulturist. The Cherry 

 is worked cither upon seedlings of what is known 

 as the Mazzard, a small, black, sweet cherry, 

 that form a very large, robust tree ; or for dwarfs, 

 on the Mahald), or perfumed cherry, which is a 

 small tree with bitter fruit, about as large as a 

 common pea. 



In tlie second place, the buds must he in a 

 proper state. The shoot, or scion budded from, 

 must be the present season's grow tli, and it should 

 be mature — tliat is, it should have completed its 



growth, which is indicated by the formation of 

 a bud on tlie point, called the terminal bud, and 

 the buds inserted should all be wood buds. Oa 

 a shoot of this kind there are a number of buds 

 unsuitable for working ; those at the base being 

 but partially developed, are liable to become 

 dormant, and those on the point, where the wood 

 is pithy, perish. The ripening, or maturing of 

 the buds, must regulate the period of budding, 

 so that the time at which any given tree or class 

 of trees should be vrorked, depends upon the tea- 

 son, the soil, a.nd other circumstances which con- 

 trol the ripening of wood. In our climate, plums 

 usually complete their growth earlier than otiior 

 fruit trees, and arc, therefore, ])udded first ; we 

 usually have ripe buds by the middle of July. In 

 some cases, when the stocks are likely to stop 

 growing early, it becomes necessary to take the 

 buds before the entii'e shoots have completed their 

 growth, and then the ripe buds from the middle 

 and lower parts are chosen. Cherries come next, 

 and are generally worked about the first of Au- 

 gust. The buds must be mature, or a failure will 

 be certain. 



In the third place, the stock must be in the 

 right condition — that is, the bark must lift freely 

 and cleanly from the wood, and there must l)e 

 a sufficient quantity of sap between the bark and 

 wood to sustain the inserted bud and form a union 

 tvith it. Stocks, such as the common sorts of 

 plum, pear, and cherry, that finish their growth 

 early, must be worked early ; while such as the 

 Peach, Quince, wild or native Plum, Mahaleb 

 Cherry, Sec, that grow late, must be worked late. 

 If these stocks that grow freely till late in the 

 autumn be budded early, the buds will either be 

 covered up — "drowned," as it is technically 

 called — by the rapid formation of new wouciy 

 substance, or they will be forced out into a pre- 

 mature growth. 



A very great degree of sappiness, in either the 

 stock or bud, make up, in part, for the dryness 

 of the other. Thus, in the fall, when plum buds 

 are quite dry, we can work them successfully on 

 stocks that are growing rapidly. Tliis is a very 

 fortunate circumstance, too. Young stocks, witii 

 a smooth, clean bark, are more easily and suc- 

 cessfully worked than old ones, and when it h.ap- 

 pens that the latter have to be used, young parts 

 of them should be chosen to insert the bud on. 



In localities where buds are liable to injui-y from 

 freezing and thawing in the winter, the buds are 

 safer on tljc north side of the stock, and when 

 exposed to danger from wind, they should ]je in- 

 serted on the side facing the point wliere the most 

 dangerous wind Idows from. Attention to this 

 point may obviate the necessity of tying up, which, 

 in large practice, is an item of some moment. 



In the fourth place, the manual operation must 

 be performed with neatness and dispatch. If a bud 

 be taken off wit!i ragged edges, or if it be ever so 

 slightly l)ruised, or if the bark of the stock be not 

 lifted clean without bruising tlie wood under it, 

 the case will certainly be a failure. The budding- 

 knife must be thin and sharp. A rougli-edged 

 razor is no mv)re certain to make a painful shave, 

 than a rough-edged budding-knife is to make an 

 unsuccessful bud. It takes a good knife, a sti-ady 

 hand, and considerable pra3tico to cut off buds 

 handsomely, well, and quick. As to taking out 

 the particle of wood attached to the bud, it mat- 



