GBAFTING 



53 



(a) Whip Grafting. — This is most generally practised. It consists 

 in making an oblique cut in both stock and scion in such a way that 

 they will fit exactly as shown in figs. 117 and 118. A tongue (t) is 

 also cut in each so as to fit one into the other. Where there is a 

 difference in size the scion must be inserted nearer one edge to secure 

 the meeting of the inner bark. When neatly fitted, as in fig. 119, the 

 whole should be bound with woollen thread or rafiia so as to keep the 

 scion from moving about, and clay or grafting wax should be at once 

 plastered all round to exclude the air and prevent drying. Fig. 120 

 shows a completed graft tied up, the dotted lines representing the 

 clay or grafting wax around the joined portions. 



(6) Cleft Grafting. — This method consists in splitting or cleaving 

 the head of the stock open by a chisel or small chopper. The end of 

 the scion is cut wedge-shaped and inserted in the cleft so as to make 

 the inner edges of the bark meet. This may also be called Market- 

 garden Grafting, as it is usually employed in furnishing the tops of old, 

 worn-out fruit trees. The objection to it is that in splitting the stock, 

 perhaps in three or four places, a much larger space than is required for 

 the scion is made, and may take a long time to heal, if it ever does. 

 There are variations of this method. 



(c) Saddle Grafting. — In this method the stock and scion must be 

 of equal thickness. The stock, as shown in fig. 121 A, is cut upwards 

 on two opposite sides to make a 



wedge. The scion, as shown in fig. 

 121 B, is split up the centre and 

 hollowed so as to fit on top of the 

 stock. The reverse method, of in- 

 serting a wedge-ended scion into the 

 stock, is called Wedge Grafting. 



(d) Crown or Bind ^Grafting. — 

 This system is generally practised in 

 spring, when the bark easily separates 

 from the wood. The scion is cut 

 obliquely, but a square shoulder is 

 made at the base by a transverse cut. 

 It is pushed in between the bark and 

 wood of the stock until the shoulder 

 rests on the top of the stock. Several 



slender grafts may be inserted by this means round the edge of a large 

 trunk, as shown in fig. 122. 



An improved method of Grafting is shown in figs. 123, 124, and 

 126. It is not exactly new, as something similar was practised about 



PIG. 121. — SADDLE 

 GBAFTINQ. 



FIG. 122. — CROWN 

 GKAFTING. 



