BUDDING AND GRAFTING. 119 



they would lose what little poison they may have pos- 

 sessed when green, because the prussic acid principle 

 is so volatile as to be immediately dispersed by the 

 mere exposure of the leaves to heat. 



Plants of the Ahnond tribe have also this peculiarity 

 in which they differ from the Roses ; their bark yields 

 gum ; as you may see by the cracked branches of dis- 

 eased Cherry and Peach trees. Like the Roses them- 

 selves, they have also a great deal of astringency ; and 

 their bark has been used in the cure of agues and 

 fevers with considerable success. 



If you analyze the characters of these three orders, 

 you will find that their differences may be expressed 

 thus : — 



. ( many Carpels. — The Rose Tribe. 



vaay s p n . ^ ^^^ Carpel.— The Almond Tribe. 



Ovary inferior . . . The A})ple Tribe. 



The woody species of these three natural orders are 

 objects of such universal cultivation, Roses for their 

 odour and beauty, Peaches, Apples, &c. for their 

 utility as fruit-trees, that I cannot do better than 

 explain to you the principles upon which the opera- 

 tions of buddinff and OTaftino- by which thev are 

 propagated, are conducted. If you do not care for 

 multiplying Apples and Pears, I dare say you would 

 at least be amused in making one kind of Rose 

 grow upon another, and in converting the wild Briars 

 of the neighbouring hedges into objects of greater 

 beauty. 



The gardener's operations of budding and grafting, 

 depend for success upon the fact, that a portion of 



