SAVING GIRDLED TREES. 75 



letting it extend above and below the wound. It is then 

 wrapped with some coarse fabric and kept moist during 

 dry weather. But when the girdling is complete — noth- 

 ing left to connect the two portions of bark — it will be 

 necessary to resort to another remedy. Figs. 73 and 74 

 represent the girdling, and the repairing of the damage 

 by inserting scions of the same kind of wood above and 

 below the wound. Cuts are made in the tree with a knife 

 or small chisel, and the limbs, with their ends cut slop- 

 ing, inserted, as shown in the figure. The scions are bent 

 outward in the middle and the ends pushed firmly into 

 the cuts so that the edges of the two portions of cut bark 

 will be in contact. If too high to be covered with a 

 mound of earth, the whole should be protected by an ap- 

 plication of grafting wax. In cases of girdling, the tops 

 of the trees should be pruned more or less severely ac- 

 cording to the extent of the injury. By this process 

 valuable trees may often be saved that otherwise would 

 be lost. 



