TIVO METHODS Oh GRAFTING. 



65 



still existed this accumulation of rotten wood along 

 the cut wood surfaces. Now, the question arises, 

 Does this "ulcer of the heart" often or ever extend 

 so far as to affect the vitality of the tree ? 



At the gardens of the Royal Horticultural Society 

 at Chiswick is a collection of graft sections taken 

 from trees 30 and 

 40 years old. Ac- 

 cording to Mr. Mur- 

 ray, these sections 

 show plainly that 

 this rot does extend, 

 and in many cases 

 to a presumably in- 

 jurious degree. 



In my own obser- 

 vations, confined to 

 trees three and four 

 years from the graft, 

 the larger number 

 of cases showed but 

 slight extension of 

 this rottenness. In 

 a few cases it had 

 considerably ad- 

 vanced, and in two 

 cases had reached a 

 positively injurious 

 extent. We do not, 

 however, expect our 

 grafted fruit trees to 

 live forever, and it 

 may be that the oc- 

 currence of real in- 

 jury from the source 

 in question is too 

 rare to be taken into 

 account, so I do not 

 wish to be under- 

 stood as utterly 

 condemning the 

 whip -graft. If I 

 have said enough 

 to induce further 

 observation among 

 those who have 

 abundant opportun- 

 ity, I shall have ac- 

 c o m p 1 i s h e d my 

 purpose. 



A word further 

 may be given con- 

 cerning the veneer- 

 graft. The cuts are Fig. 3. Microscupil .sl 



Fig. 



easier to make than those of the whip-graft, but 

 there is this disadvantage, which to men who graft 

 in quantity is an important consideration, that it re- 

 quires more care in the tying. The band must be 

 strong, and should be firmly adjusted, to insure 

 keeping the scion in place until union is effected. 



All my sections 

 show that very per- 

 fect union is ob- 

 tained by this 

 method, and I would 

 particularly recom- 

 mend it for grafting 

 all ornamental 

 trees. Any exten- 

 sion of the decay 

 spoken of as pos- 

 sible in whip-grafted 

 trees must tend to 

 weaken the tree at, 

 or just below the 

 surface of the 

 ground, the very 

 point where great- 

 est strength is need- 

 ed. With our or- 

 namental trees, 

 which we expect 

 will live or thrive 

 indefinitely, and 

 many times in ex- 

 posed situations, 

 this liabihty is worth 

 consideration. It 

 need never arise 

 from a well-execut- 

 ed veneer-graft. 



I have practiced 

 the two methods 

 spoken of, and have 

 had the m under 

 comparison for four 

 seasons, and am 

 more and more in- 

 clining to prefer- 

 ence for the veneer- 

 graft. The reasons 

 for this preference 

 seem to be based on 

 the fundamental dif- 

 ferences here ex- 

 plained. 



E. S. Crandall. 

 Whip-Graft. JMicItinin. 



MiCROscoi'ie Sei.iiox ai d, Fig. 



