July, 1913 



THE GARDEN AND FIELD. 



f.43 



To prepare the scion, which 

 shovild possess two healthy btuls, 

 it shouhl be cut from just below^ 

 the lower l)U(l into a wedjje, ciit- 

 tinjj from both sides, the side of 

 the scit)!! on wdiich the last, bud is 

 placed, and which, when in posi- 

 tion, will 'point away from the 

 vine, should be thicker than the 

 opposite side j the wedge shouhl 

 taper down to a thin ll^at point 

 from- the bud downwards. Cut 

 into the pith only on one side, 

 which w-ill bind the wedtge stronger 

 and firmer. The scion will be 

 firmer and better seated on the 

 stock if a small square shoulder is 

 made on either side where it starts. 



An even more simple way is to 

 cut the wedge on the scion quite 

 2 ins. long, starting some distance 

 above the lower bud, making a 

 long, tapering wedge, the bud 

 coming nearly half-way down.' Cut 

 close up to the bud, but as long 

 as the middle is left it is all. right. 

 Slip the long wedge well down, so 

 that the bud is half an inch or 

 more down the side of the stock. 

 A graft put in like that won't fail, 

 for the graft takes first on each 

 side of the bud, and a strong 

 shoot always comes from the bud, 

 and it never blows off. 



When the stock is old and large, 

 say, 3in. or more in diameter, it 

 is better not to snlit the stock 

 open, but with the chisel split 

 down the side. Then with a sharp 

 knife smooth the side of the split, 

 cut the scion knife-shaped, to fit 

 the stock, and in.sert one on each 

 side. 



When the stock and scion are 

 about the same size, use the whip 



and tongue method of grafting. 

 .\s I)efore, care shouhl be taken to 

 sec that the cambium layers on 

 one side coincide. If the scion and 

 stock are of the same thickness 

 thev will cnincide on both sides, 

 hut it is important that one side 

 be right. In ])rei)aring the scion 

 and stock, first cut each with a 

 clean, oblique cut. Then cut the 

 tongues, and when put together 

 thev will fit exactly. 



Cultivation and Fertility. 



Thorough and judicious cultiva- 

 tion is essential for a soil to give 

 its best results as a crop-prodncing 

 medium. Providing a soil is w^ell- 

 drained, the more deeply it is cul- 

 tivated, the more extensive is the 

 area through which the plants can 

 foragie in search of food, and thus 

 it is that improvement in tillage 

 methods which result in deepening 

 the soil and promoting nitrifica- 

 tion, tend to have the same effect 

 as application.s', 'of manure. 



The advantages of a deep soil, 

 as compared with a shallow soil, 

 are obvious, and — expressed con- 

 cisely — these may be said to con- 

 sist in the fact that when, land is 

 ploughed to a depth of no more 

 than 3 inches, the plants growing 

 thereon have inches of food, while 

 when the land is jjloughed 6 inches 

 deep the plant has access to 6 

 inches of food, and so on. The 

 lower portions of the soil are not 

 so rich in available plant food as 

 the upper portions, but this may 

 he remedied to a large extent by 

 suitable cultivation, which .results 



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in admitting air, tuoisturc, and 

 heat, the necessary londj lions un- 

 der which fertililv is developed. 



It need hardly he |)ointed out, 

 however, that any deliberate at- 

 tcmi)t to lower the line o£ division 

 between the soil and sub.soil by 

 deeper ploughing should be carried 

 out gradualK- and with caution, 

 and the ir.ost judicious plan is to 

 extend the operation over several 

 years, i.e., to plough just a ilittle 

 deeper each season than was done 

 in the previous year. Many in- 

 stances are on record in which the 

 fertility of land remarkable for its 

 crop-producing capacity has .suffer- 

 ed enormously as the result of low- 

 ering the depth of jiloughing 2 or 

 3 inches below the norma,! level in 

 one occasion. Thi.s is because the 

 surface soil containing the organ- 

 isms which are responsible for the 

 breaking down of plant food, has 

 been buried, and a heavy raw in- 

 fertile sub.soil brought to the top. 



Another important point in con- 

 nection with the capacity of a soil 

 to return large crops is its ability 

 to retain moisture. T^is nower is 

 greatest when the land coo tains a 

 g^ood proportion of humus, is well 

 tilled, thoroughly pulverised, the 

 subsoil firm, and the soil kept in 

 the form of a loose mulch at the 

 surface. 



As the result of all these condi- 

 tions, absorption of rain water 

 takes place readily, and this is re- 

 tained instead of rapidly draining 

 away. Water in a cultivated soil 

 is held in the form of thin surface 

 films enclosing each separate par- 

 ticle. It is obyious, therefore, 

 that the more thoroughly the land 

 is pulverised by cultiyation, the 

 greater will be the number of soil 

 Particles, and the 'greater the 

 capacity of the land to retain 

 moisture. The presence of humns 

 increases this storage capacity, 

 and reduces evaporation. It has 

 been estimated by agriculttiral phy- 

 sicists that a ton of humus will 

 store over seven times as much 

 moi.sture as a ton of sand, and 

 further, that sand loses its water 

 by evaporation from three to four 

 times as rapidly as the humus. 

 Clay soils store only about one- 

 fourth as much moisture as humus, 

 and lose it by evaporation about 

 twice as rapidly. — A'-ricrltural 

 News. 



To make the colt finished pro- 

 duct, either for saddle or harness, 

 requires experience and time. It 

 is nearly, if not quite, a science, 

 but you m.ust be gentle, patient, 

 and finr.'. 



