46 FIELD NOTES ON APPLE CULTURE. 
formed a disagreeable irregularity at the junction. If 
the stock isa much more rapid grower than the graft 
there will be a sudden upward contraction at the point 
of union, or the opposite direction of contraction may 
occur if the graft grows faster than the stock. This ir- 
regularity in the trunk or main branches may not impair 
the vitality of the tree, but it is always unsightly and 
annoying. 
It is a wise plan to avoid grafting as much as possible. 
There are few orchards, however, in which it can be en- 
tirely dispensed with. The most successful grafting is 
that which disturbs the tree the least and which leaves it 
the nearest like its original shape. The first rule to learn 
in grafting large trees is this: Graft many and small 
limbs. It is a good plan before cutting a tree to stand 
at some distance from it and to decide carefully at what 
distance from the body or from the center of the top the 
main limbs should be grafted to insure a good top. Ifa 
spread of ten feet each way from the center is decided 
upon, let all the main branches be grafted at about that 
distance. Figure 6 is a tolerable representation of this 
practice.. Simply making the scions live is but a part of 
the operation upon old trees. One must plan for the fu- 
ture top of the tree. He must graft such limbs as should 
make permanent factors in the top he is building, and 
while he should avoid grafting too many limbs, he should 
likewise avoid grafting too few. It should be borne in 
mind that when a horizontal limb is grafted, the scion 
will grow upwards, and the breadth of the tree will not 
be much increased by subsequent growth. This is es- 
pecially true of old trees. Trees ten years old, if prop- 
