10 



not removed, the development of the plants was, in the majority of 

 the cases, hindered, often so severely that they were discarded as 

 valueless. Plate III shows plants of the same age from plantings 

 of husked and unhusked seed, one an extreme specimen from an 

 unhusked seed which is typical of about 30 per cent of the plants 

 from seed planted in this manner (fig. 1, center). 



Kernels which produce a single plant are preferable to those send- 

 ing up a number of plants, as the seedlings are more thrifty and 

 vigorous and are ready for use as stocks in a short time, while where 

 a number of seedlings are produced they are very slender and slow 

 growing and in many cases never become satisfactory for working. 

 Among the wild Porto Kican types grown, Rosa and Redondo 

 seldom produced more than one seedling, while all of the other more 

 common ones produced two or more. The seedlings of East Indian 

 varieties produce large thrifty plants which are preferable as stocks, 

 as they grow faster than the Porto Rican kinds, and during the 

 few years they have been under observation no undesirable qualities 

 have been noted. Among the varieties tested Sandersha, Totafari, 

 Alphonse, and Amini produce only one plant per seed and are most 

 satisfactory as stocks. Cambodiana seedlings are vigorous, but, as 

 from two to seven plants grow from a single seed, care must be 

 taken to remove all but one of the seedlings soon after they appear, 

 if a good stock plant is desired. 



Whether the seeds are planted in pots or in the nursery the soil 

 should be a rich loam with plenty of sand to insure good drainage, 

 for if the growth of the seedling is checked by lack of food or excess 

 of soil moisture it will be permanently injured and often will not 

 recover its vigor sufficiently to be of value as a stock. The seeds re- 

 quire shallow planting to prevent suffocation. 



GRAFTING. 



When seedlings are somewhat thicker than a lead pencil (about f 

 inch in diameter) and the bark has assumed a grayish color (about 

 seven months after planting the seed) they are of a convenient size 

 for grafting. Then as soon as they make a flush — that is, as soon 

 as they are in a growing condition and the new red leaves are just 

 appearing — they are ready for use. If the plants are thrifty they 

 will remain in good condition for several days and often two weeks. 



Branches must be selected for scions which have not made a recent 

 flush, but are just on the point of starting a new growth. Such tips 

 have rather mature wood and the buds nearest the end are swollen 

 but not quite ready to open into growth. They should be cut below 

 the third or fourth node. If any of the buds just below this point, 

 on wood of the same age, are swollen preparatory to opening, the sec- 



