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CASSELL'S POPULAR GARDENING. 



facilitated by a clean even cut. The scion should 

 now be cut in like manner, reversing the direction 

 of the cut to form an exact counterpart to the 

 other. The directions with respect to leaving a bud 

 at the thin end of the stock apply equally well 

 here. All this should be done as expeditiously as 

 possible, to prevent the delicate tissue of the cam- 

 bium layer from becoming injured through ex- 

 posure. Having cut the scion and stock to fit each 

 other accurately, the next step in the operation is 

 to firmly secure them in position, by tying with a 

 piece of matting or raffia. All that now remains is 

 to putty over the splice with some grafting- clay, in 

 order to make it impervious to atmospheric changes 



Fig. 19.— Whip or Splice-grafting-. 



of drought on the one hand, and excessive moisture 

 on the other, either of which would seriously injure 

 or altogether frustrate the union. Take now a piece 

 of the same clay, and placing it round the graft, 

 squeeze it firmly between the hands, making a sort 

 of ball that will not be liable to fall away. This 

 is to prevent the moisture of the graft from drying 

 up, and if the stock is worked close to the ground, 

 it may further be protected by drawing the soil 

 around it. Should very dry weather intervene, in 

 the case of grafting at some distance from the 

 ground, it is sometimes convenient and advisable 

 to wrap some moss round the ball of clay, and even 

 water it at intervals with a fine-rosed watering-pot, 

 to prevent its parting with its moisture too rapidly 

 by evaporation. 



Presuming that the stock is of greater thickness 

 than the scion, a condition of frequent occurrence, a 

 slightly different mode of preparation will be neces- 

 sary. Instead of cutting stock and scion equally 



thin, the former will have to be headed down with a 

 slightly slanting cut, and then cut off a thin slice of 

 no greater width than the scion will cover, so that the 

 two cambium layers will fit accurately. Union may, 

 however, be effected if one side only of each comes 



Fig. 20.— Saddle-grafting. 



in contact, but this, being a weaker combination than 

 is desirable, should be avoided. A slight modifica- 

 tion of splice -grafting is that called Tongue-grafting. 

 A little tongue is left on the scion to fit into a cor- 

 responding notch of the stock. The object of this 

 is to prevent the graft slipping down, thus spoiling 

 the accuracy of contact between the coinciding cam- 

 bium layers. This requires a little more skill and 

 time, and is not much practised. 



"Whip or spHce-grafting is most extensively em- 

 ployed for all kinds of garden plants, whether in the 

 houses or out of doors, for fruit and ornamental 

 trees, including Conifers. 



In Saddle-grafting it is most important that 

 the stock and scion should be of equal thickness. 

 The stock, after being headed down, should be 

 cut at the top to form an acutely tapering wedge, 

 with its point upwards. The scion should be slit 

 down the middle some way, and a piece neatly 



