390 Fruit-growing in Arid Regions 



trees, both young and old, from injury by sun-scald. The stubs 

 made in grafting are also protected in the same manner. 

 The California formula is as follows: 



Quicklime 30 pounds 



Tallow , 4 pounds 



Salt 5 pounds 



Water enough to make mixture flow well 



This makes a tenacious whitewash not easily washed off by 

 rains or removed by other means. 



Grafting-waxes. Several formulas are given for the prepara- 

 tion of grafting-waxes. There are the waxes applied warm with 

 a brush and those applied cold, the heat of the hands being suffi- 

 cient to make them pliable. With the first it is necessary to have 

 special equipment to keep the wax melted in the field, and this 

 generally limits its use to a few professional grafters who are pre- 

 pared to use it. The cold waxes are prepared for use by melting 

 together the ingredients, pouring the melted material in cold 

 water, and pulling it like taffy until it becomes a buff color. It 

 can be kept from season to season by immersing it in water. 

 The common formula given for the preparation of this wax is 

 four pounds of resin, two pounds of beeswax, and one pound of 

 tallow. Paraffin may be substituted for the beeswax in this 

 formula; although it seems that the resulting wax is hardly as 

 durable, it serves the purpose very well. By increasing the amount 

 of resin in the above formula to six pounds, it makes a very good 

 hard wax for warm application. Another good wax to be applied 

 warm is prepared by melting together three pounds of resin, one 

 pound of beeswax, and one pint of raw linseed oil. 



