38 Fruit-growing in Arid Regions 



of where the trees are grown does not seem to be so impor- 

 tant as some persons are inclined to think. Provided the 

 trees reach the grower in good condition, it probably 

 matters little where they are grown. As a rule, the 

 southern-grown trees have given as good satisfaction in 

 the West as those grown in the northern nurseries. 



Provided the trees are equally strong and clean, it 

 seems to matter little whether they are budded or grafted, 

 or how they are grafted. Yet we often find growers who 

 are prejudiced toward one or the other, and nurserymen 

 who are ready to contend that, on account of their pecul- 

 iar method of propagation, their stock is superior to 

 all other. 



As a rule, the budded stock shows less crown gall than 

 the grafted stock. The average yearling bud is larger than 

 the average yearling graft, has a better root system, and 

 with equal chances, makes a better growth in the orchard 

 the first season. As yearlings, both the budded and the 

 grafted tree are mere whips, and may be headed to suit 

 the grower. The two-year-old budded tree is generally 

 too large to plant, and, like the two-year-old graft, stands 

 a chance of having been spoiled by improper training 

 in the nursery. First-class yearling root-grafts are very 

 satisfactory trees to plant, although they will not make 

 as good growth the first season as most yearling buds or 

 two-year-old grafts; the root system is not well developed. 

 Good "stands" are generally secured with the yearling 

 grafts, however, and if the purchaser insists on getting 

 first-class stock, trees that are three feet in height, and 

 caliper better than three eighths of an inch, he will not 

 be disappointed in the results. When it is possible to 



