Top-grafting 



281 



old tree shall be of as good and handy shape as one that 

 has been grown properly from the start. 



In forming the new top, care should be taken to 

 avoid bad crotches, such as are represented in Fig. 101 

 (from G. H. Powell, Del. Bull., as is also Fig. 100). 

 The new scaffold branches should alternate and should 

 spread widely. Sometimes the trunk is grafted midway, 

 and the top taken out farther up; in such cases, the union 

 usually remaius apparent throughout the life of the tree 

 (Fig. 102). 



Grafting-wax. 



The waxes 

 used in grafting 

 are of two gen- 

 eral kinds, — the 

 resin-beeswax 

 preparations, 

 and the alcohohc 

 waxes. The 

 former kinds are 

 hard waxes that 

 must be worked up and warmed in the hands when they 

 are applied, or sometimes they are melted and run on in 

 a liquid state; the latter kinds are liquid or paste plastics 

 that harden on exposure (on evaporation of the alcohol). 



Standard wax. — ^Resin, 4 parts by weight; beeswax, 2 parts by 

 weight; rendered tallow, 1 part by weight. Melt all together in a 

 kettle over a stove, avoiding boihng; then pour the liquid into 

 a pail or tub of water to harden; then work with the hands, pulling 

 it to a grain; make up into convenient balls or skeins. It will keep 

 for years. 



Softer wax. — ^Resin, 4 parts by weight; beeswax, 2 parts by weight; 

 linseed oil, 1 part or more, according as the material must be hard or 



Fig. 102. The place of the graft on the trunk of 

 an old apple tree. 



