io8 



AGRICULTURE. 



V 



Budding is a means of increasing very many kinds of fruits. 

 We have, under the apple, referred to the fact that the living 

 part of the tree is on the outside, just under the rough bark. 



If a living bud is taken from 

 one tree, by neatly cutting it 

 out with a little of the wood 

 beneath, it may be made to 

 grow if at once placed in con- 

 tact with the similar living 

 part of another tree. This is 

 done by making a slit up and 

 down and one across the bark, 

 T-shaped. This cut is opened 

 and the bud placed in and the 

 bark lapped over it. The cut 

 and bud in place are then 



Fig. 54. Budding. carefully tied up. It will be 



seen that budding must be done when the bark is loose or 

 will slip, that is in midsummer. In the following spring the 

 old growth above the bud must be cut off, and buds are rub- 

 bed off below so as to send all the sap into the new branch. 



THE PLUM. We now come to the stone-fruits the plum, 

 the peach, and the cherry. They differ from the pear and 

 apple group, but they belong to the large rose family. Exam- 

 ine their blossoms. We have in America several wild varieties 

 of plums, from which some of our hardier varieties are derived. 

 From the European plum come our highly flavoured plums. 

 As a rule they are not so hardy as the natives. A third class 

 of plums is derived from Japanese varieties. The plum is 

 propagated by budding and grafting. For northern climates 

 the stock used should be seedlings or the native wild plum. In 

 milder climates the peach is used quite extensively as a stock. 

 THE PEACH tree is not known here in a wild state ; it 

 has come from Asia and is closely related to the almond. 



