yo Grafting the ]/ine. 



ditions. But suppose, now, that we have a vine growing in the open air 

 whose leaves are just fully developed, and that we secured grafts during 

 winter of a desired sort to work on this vine : we should, most probably, 

 after cutting off the grafts, put them away in some place where heat would 

 not start the buds, in order that the sap in these grafts should lie dormant ; 

 and, when the vine had arrived at the state of growth spoken of, we should 

 take these dormant scions, and work them on the stock. Now, we ask you, 

 reader, do you think that such scions, or grafts, would be in an exact con- 

 dition with the vine-stock ? Your reason, now the incongruity is spoken 

 of, tells you no : for you can see at once that these grafts would have to 

 remain (when grafted on the stock) some time before the hard glutinous 

 matter would be dissolved sufficiently to be in the exact condition of the 

 same matter which is returning over the wood of the vine-stock ; and, after 

 waiting long enough to allow heat to so liquidize this glutinous matter of 

 the scion, both fluids would then unite, and growth would be effected. This 

 is the reason why scions take so long to start into growth. Now, to obvi- 

 ate this, we bring the scions into the same temperature as the stocks are 

 growing in, some eight or ten days previous to their being worked : by 

 this means we get the sap, as it is called, in the scion, in a nearer approach 

 to the condition of the sap of the vine-stock ; and the result has been, with 

 us, seldom a failure. The same law applies to the exotic vine as to those in 

 the open air ; and so easily is the grafting effected, that we have taken vines 

 that were spur-pruned, say of a black variety, and inserted a white variety 

 at every alternate position, producing the singular-looking effect of having 

 one bunch white, and the other black, alternately, on the same vine. In 

 this way we worked what was called a new variety, — Muscat Hamburg 

 (black) on Vv'hite Muscat of Alexandria. Such operation is performed 

 by merely taking a single bud, cutting it wedge form, and tying it in where 

 required. This we have often done without even the grafting-wax. In- 

 deed, failure often results from using the latter carelessly, rubbing it in be- 

 tween the bark of the scion and the stock. The use of wax is proper if it 

 does nothing more than exclude the air. As we graft vines usually under 

 glass, when of a large size, in the ordinary way, by either the saddle, whip, 

 or crown method, there remains generally an unsightly, warty excrescence, 

 which becomes enlarged with the age of the vine, and prevents that free 



