258 
AMERICAN AGRICr-LTURIST. 
[Jdi,t, 
most Eis well where they are ou different branch- 
es of the Slime plant, the action of wind and of 
insects bein^ considered. And it now becomes 
evident that liermaphrodite blossoms enjoy a 
similar advantage. In onr Iris and Arislolocliia, 
at least, it is now clear enough that it is not in- 
tended that the pollen shall reach the stigma 
whieh lies so close to it, and tliat is tiie reason 
why the anther and the stigma of Iris face away 
from encli other: but the pollen is intended to 
be applied to some other stigma of the s.nne spe- 
cies; and tliat is the reason of tliis curions ar- 
rangement of the jxirts, and why an insect is 
called in to do the work. A bee can not take 
tlie honey from an Iris flower without carrying 
off on its rough liead some pollen from the 
anther it must rub against. It can not well 
t.ake tlie honej' from the ne.xt flower of the sort 
it flies to without depositing some of this pollen 
on that stigma as it seeks its feeding place. 
Tlie Dutchman's Pipe never set anj' fruit in our 
garden for 25 years, e.\'ceptonce, and then only a 
single pod, evidently because it does not get the 
needful help; for in its native haunts in the 
mountains of Virginia and Carolina, it seeds 
freel}'. There some small insect, probabl)' a 
coleopterous bug, that can enter the narrow ori- 
fice, doubtless visits it, attracted by the odor, 
and feeds on the scanty secretion at the very 
bottom of the flower. It can hardly fail to crawl 
over one of the anthers ou its way out, and get 
its legs or chest powdered with pollen. Some 
of this jjollen may be left on the stigma of the 
same flower, but is more likely to be deposited 
on the stigma of the next flower the insect en- 
ters. We hope to show that this provision for 
cross-breeding, which is so very complete in 
these two cases, and in several others we have 
yet to mention, is not confined to certain extra- 
ordinary instances, but is so common in some 
way or other, that it must be regarded as the 
rule among flowers. A. G. 
SometMng About Budding^. 
— • 
Were the liorticuUural department of tho 
Agriculturist made up solely for accomplished 
gardeners, we should devote it mainly to re- 
cording the progress of horticulture. But as 
it is for the people at large, to whom as a 
general thing, the simplest operations of the 
gardener are mysteries, we arc often obliged to 
go back to first principles, and treat of things 
which, to some readers, are as simple as A B C. 
Our correspondence is a fair index of the wants 
of our readers, and as we have now several 
letters asking us to say sometliing about bud- 
ding, we give such directions as will enable any 
one to perform the operation? 
Budding consists in removing a bud from one 
tree and planting it, so to speak, in the stem of 
another. The things required arc: buds; stocks, 
as the tree to be budded is called ; a knife ; and 
some tj'ing material. 
Buds. — Loolc at a shoot which has grown 
this year, upon any fruit tree. When it ceases 
to grow in length, it commences to form buds, 
which are to be developed and continue the 
growth next 3'ear. There will be a terminal 
bud at the end of the shoot, and others along 
the side, at the base of each leaf, called axUlary 
buds. These last are the kind used in budding, 
and there will be a difS^rence in these. Those 
nearest the end of the shoot will be the largest, 
while those farthest down will be very small 
and sometimes hardly perceptible. The shoots 
are cut when the buds are well formed, the time 
varying with the kind, and somowliat with the 
'^ 
season, just below the last plump bud. If the 
buds on the upper end of the shoot apj)ear un- 
ripened, cut them ofl'; then 
cut away the leaves, but let 
the leaf stalk remain, and 
we then have what nurseiy 
men call a "slick of buds," 
(fig. 1,) which may be used 
at once, or kept from drying 
in damp moss, or other m;i- 
terial, and be preserved a 
week or two in a cool place. 
Stocks. — Budding is usu- 
ally performed on yoiuig 
stocks. Peaches are work- 
ed the first year from the 
seed. Pear, apple, and other 
stocks are grown one year 
from the seed, taken up and 
heeled-in fiu' the winter, 
and set out in the spring in 
nursery rows, and are usu- 
ally ready to bud the fol- 
lowing summer or autumn. 
Knife. — Any sharp thin 
bladed knife will answer, 
■where there is but little 
Fig. 1. budding to be done, but 
for continuous work, as in nurseries where buds 
are put in by thousands, a proper budding knife 
is used, the form of whicli depends much upon 
the fancy of the operator. Sharp and 
round pointed knives are made for the 
purpose, wilh a thin piece of ivory or 
bone at the end of the handle for lift- 
ing the bark. Some rapid operators 
lift the bark witli the knife blade. 
Tying Material. — Bass bark or mat- 
ting is the best material, though in 
absence of this, woolen yarn, cotton 
wicking, or even a narrow strip of 
cotton cloth may serve as a substitute. 
Time for Budding. — Stocks can on- 
ly be budded while they are growing, 
and the bark " runs" or parts easily 
from the wood. Plums usually stop growing 
the soonest and are the first to be budded. 
The season for budding extends from July, 
with the plum, to September, witlithe peach, the 
time for each variety being modified by the sea- 
son and location. When the buds are well ripen- 
ed and the bark lifts easily is the proper time. 
Operating. — Remove a bud (fig. 3) from the 
stick by cutting from below, inserting tlie knife 
about three quarters of an inch below 
the bud, and coming out half an inch 
above, taking as little wood as possible. 
The bud is usually held between the 
lips while an incision is made in the 
stock. Select a smooth place on the 
north side of the stock, as near the 
ground as possible, especially if bud- 
ding on the quince or other dwarfing 
stock. Make a cross cut quite through 
the bark down to the wood, and then 
a longitudinal one extending from this 
down, as shown in fig. 3. Lift the 
corners of the cut portion without 
wounding the bark, and insert the bud, 
holding it by means of the leaf stalk, 
Fig. i. and crowd it well down into place. 
A portion of the bark of the bud will project 
above the horizontal cut, this must be cut off 
even with the cross cut, so that the bark of 
the bud and that of the stock will fit nicely to- 
gether, as in figure 4. The bud is now to be 
securely tied: commence winding below the 
bud and bind securely to exclude air and rain, 
Fig. 
'm 
Fiu 
finishing the winding above the bud, as in fig. 
0. In a fortnight, if the buds appear plump 
and sound, the union has taken place; if they 
have shrivelled, the operation may be repeated, 
if not too late in the season. In 
about a month the tying may 
be removed, but the buds 
should be looked to before this, 
and if from the growth of the 
stock, tlie string is so tight as 
to cut into the bark, it must be 
loosened. Some propagators 
always remove the portion of 
wood bencatli the bud, while 
others leave it in. Where it 
parts readily from the bud, it 
may be removed, hut where it 
adheres firmly, it is best to 
leave it in, as there is great rislc 
of injuring the bud in trying to 
remove it. Mr. H. linger, of 
Logansport, Ind., who was formerly engaged 
in the nursery business, sends us a form of 
budding knife which he found so satisfactory, 
that he wishes others to have the benefit of it: 
"Take a wide bladed budding knife, and 
grind a bevel ou the point three-fourths of an 
inch long; this prepares the knife for the opera- 
tion. Now, make your cross cut on the stalk 
so as to flare the bark out a little, place the 
knife as shown in the engraving, fig. 6, bear on 
snflieientlj- hard to cut through the bark, make 
a quick right and left motion wilh the upper or 
heel of the bevel, keeping 
the point fixed. This makes 
the perpendicular cut and 
opens the bark at once so 
that the bud can be insert- 
ed and shoved down to its 
place without any difficulty. 
This mode does away with 
all devices for opening the 
liark, all of which are more 
or less c;tlculated, in their 
use, to rupture the tender 
inner surface of the inci- 
sion, a thing that should al- 
ways be avoided, as it mili- 
tates against the sure and 
speedy union of bud aud slock, 
to say that a smart man with some one to tie 
the buds for him, can set at least three thousand 
buds per day by using the above described knife." 
Fig. 6. 
I will venture 
Jerusalem Artichoke.— (•2«^«<"'''"" tuberosui.) 
Every one recollects the " Artichoke," which 
as a boy lie used to dig out of the old garden, 
and which, as boys will eat everything that will 
yield to their teeth, he used to crunch and con- 
sider good. This old plant, which is occasion- 
ally seen, has now turned up in France, as some- 
thing wonderful, and the journals are as enthu- 
siastic over it as only Frenchmen can be. 
This is nothing like the true Artichoke, which 
is a thistle-like flower, the leafy scales of which 
are eaten. The Jerusalem Artichoke is a spe- 
cies of Sunflower, which bears tubers somewhat 
like a small long potato. These tubere are eaten 
when cooked, aud as a salad, and from their re- 
semblance in flavor to the Artichoke, they have 
received its name. The origin of the name 
" Jerusalem," as applied to this plant, is a little 
curious. As already stated, the plant is a spe- 
cies of Sunflower, which in Italian is called 
girasole, turn-sun. The word girasole easily run 
into Jerusalem, a name now firml}' fixed upon 
the plant, aud does not, as many suppose, indi- 
