49 



active, and the sudden check from heading down 

 such a tree, will in many cases destroy it. But should 

 it live, the roots continuing in a state of activity, the 

 scion is overflowing, as it were, by the sap ; that is, 

 the sap flows so fast from the wounds, as to prevent 

 the process of granulation, by which the scion is 

 united to the stock. To graduate, then, the supply 

 of sap to the wants of the scion, is the primary 

 object; and the measures necessary to secure this 

 condition are just those which tend to preserve the 

 life of the stock after heading dovm. In the middle 

 of July, Dr. Page selected the scions from thirty 

 trees, with four or five eyes, taking care to choose 

 those which contained leaf-buds. The stocks chosen 

 were moderately-growing instead of thrifty stocks, 

 and were trees of the growth of that season from the 

 seed. Before heading down, he passed a long sharp 

 knife down entirely round the tree, and severed all 

 the lateral roots at the distance of three or four inches 

 from the trunk, according to its growth. This done, 

 the trees were headed down at a point where the 

 stem was just the size of the scion, or a little larger, 

 as the scions were inserted a little on one side of the 

 pith. The insertions were made in the ordinary way 

 of cleft-grafting. The scions were then secured by a 

 narrow strip of sheet lead, wound spirally over the 

 whole length of the cleft, and a small ball of grafting 

 clay put over the whole. Every scion inserted in 



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