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The Fruit-Growers Guide-Book 



down in the cut and, by a sharp jerk, break it off. This 

 completes the process. The finished graft should be from 

 seven to nine inches long. The old way was to wax the 

 point of union or wrap with waxed thread or strips of cloth 

 but this is not necessary. 



The right and wrong way to plant a graft. Holes are 

 made with a dibber and grafts dropped in. If soil is packed 

 down with the heel it is liable to leave an open space around 

 the root, as at b. The better way is to close the hole with 

 the dibber, as at c. Soil then packed tight against the root, 

 as at d. 



Pack the grafts in bundles of fifty to a hundred each 

 and store in green sawdust or moist sand where they are 

 to remain until planting time. While packed in the saw- 

 dust the cut surfaces which have been joined together will 

 actually begin to heal over and partially unite, and on this 

 account the grafts should not be disturbed until they are 

 taken out to plant. Keep the box of grafts in a moderately 

 cool room or a cellar, or bury them in the soil out of doors 



