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1916 ANNUAL REPORT 



that the roots are curled by the pot and the tree on that account is not 

 so thrifty or desirable. This objection has been overrated. The curled 

 roots may remain so, but they are immediately replaced by others, which 

 grow naturally and form the real root basis of the tree. True, a plant 

 or tree may become stunted or pot bound by long growth in a pot, and 

 a long time be required for its recovery. But the process of starting 

 seeds in pots and planting them in the field early is in my judgment the 

 ideal one, with no disadvantage whatever attending it. 



The Budding Process 



While propagation has been accomplished by the rooting of cuttings 

 and by grafting, experiment reveals many objections to each of these 

 methods, and shield budding is the accepted practice. 



The young trees should be set eighteen or twenty inches apart to 

 allow for an adequate sized ball of earth at transplanting season. When 

 the plants are as large as a lead pencil (or preferably slightly larger) 

 budding may begin. This may be at any time from the first of May to the 

 first of January, the season not being so important as the condition of the 

 stocks, which must be in vigorous growth, with an abundance of sap 

 running. A copious irrigation three or four days before the budding 

 work begins is an advantage. A shield bud averaging one inch in length 

 cut to include a thin, small slice of the wood itself, is used. The knife 

 should have a keen, razorlike edge, and be kept so. Insert the bud in a T 

 or inverted T incision — it makes no difference which — and wrap fairly 

 tight with a strip of cotton cloth one-half inch wide and ten inches long. 



If at the end of three weeks the bud is green and healthy, take the 

 wrap off, and using the same strip, rewrap. This loosens the tie so 

 that it will not cut the growing stock. At the end of three weeks more, 

 repeat this process, and if the bud is still in healthy condition, cut back 

 the top of the seedling tree two or three inches, to start the bud into 

 growth. 



From now on great care should be exercised to keep the young seed- 

 ling in healthy, vigorous condition, and to remove from time to time any 

 suckers or branches thrown out before they have made much growth. 

 When the bud is six inches long, draw it up to the seedling tree with 

 a raffia tie, in order to train it to a straight upward growth. When it has 

 grown to a height of twelve or fifteen inches, stake it and cut the seed- 

 ling top back to within six inches of the bud. In this condition it may 

 be allowed to continue to grow until the bud is three feet high, when 

 the remaining seedling top should be "stubbed back" to a point just 

 above the bud, slightly tapering to the opposite side of the seedling 

 tree. This junction or union point will subsequently heal over and the 

 tree have a tendency to become straighter each year. 



Given seedlings in vigorous growth, and a budder with skill and judg- 

 ment, still a large factor in successful work is the selection of the bud 

 for insertion. This should not be from tender, sappy growth at the 

 end of a limb, but usually from a partially matured wood further back, 

 averaging roughly speaking four to six months of age. Here experience 

 alone is a sufficient guide. Broadly speaking a plump, fat bud not yet 



