Vol. LXVII No. 3067. 
NEW YORK, NOVEMBER 7, 1908. 
WEEKLY, $1.00 PER YEAR. 
HOW TO MAKE ROOT-GRAFTS. 
The Process Clearly Explained. 
The art of root-grafting has been practiced for 
years by nurserymen, the 
apple, pear, quince and 
mulberry being largely 
propagated by this method 
—also tender or weak- 
growing varieties of the 
grape being grafted on a 
stronger stock like Con¬ 
cord. The American per¬ 
simmon can be easily 
propagated by root-graft¬ 
ing on seedling stocks of 
the persimmon. The boom 
in tree planting in the 
South, as in the North 
and West, after the War 
of the Rebellion, made a 
great demand for trees, 
and the nurserymen made 
every effort to supply the 
demand as quickly as pos¬ 
sible. The old way of 
planting the apple and 
pear stock in the Spring 
and budding it in the 
Summer or Fall, taking- 
all of the following Sum¬ 
mer to get a one-year top, 
was too slow a process, so 
root-grafting was tried 
and soon became popular. 
When the rich prairie 
soils of the West began to 
grow apple-seedlings with 
a root as straight and 
clean as the top of a reed, 
another quick method of 
propagating the apple was 
opened to the alert Amer¬ 
ican nurseryman, and they 
soon started the system ot 
piece-root grafting—using 
about 2/ to three inches 
of root for each graft. 
This method seemed fairly 
satisfactory for strong¬ 
growing varieties, but as 
a rule was an injury to 
the planter, as many va¬ 
rieties failed to have a 
root system strong enough 
to sustain them in the or¬ 
chard, the result was 
many of the trees blew 
over during storms, and 
never made good trees. 
The country was flooded 
with cheap trees, and the 
nurserymen being over¬ 
stocked sold at a loss and 
consigned thousands of 
them to the brush heap. 
The tree agent was quick 
to take advantage of this 
state of affairs, and in 
every community he was 
telling people that they 
should plant his trees, 
which were grown on 
whole roots—budded only 
—and never under any 
conditions must they plant 
In my opinion a root-grafted tree grown on the 
whole-root system is a better tree than the budded 
tree. The bud is inserted above ground, and if the 
variety budded is a stronger and heavier grower than 
the seedling stock on 
which it is worked, the 
bud will outgrow the part 
of the top of the stock on 
which it was worked. In 
the orchard the disparity 
will become more and 
more marked as. they grow 
older, whereas if the same 
variety had been root- 
grafted on the same stock, 
the root alone being used, 
and as a part of the top, 
then the root system 
would have been all that 
was desired, it being the 
top and not the root 
which failed to keep pace 
in growth with the bud 
or graft. 
Root-grafting, especially 
with the apple, is so sim¬ 
ple and so sure a process 
of propagation that al¬ 
most anyone should be 
able to grow his own 
stock of apples, and it is 
so much easier for the in¬ 
experienced than is bud¬ 
ding that it should be en¬ 
couraged in the young or- 
chardist. The season of 
the year (Winter) when 
it can be done is of great 
importance, while budding 
of the apple and pear is 
during July and August. 
The scions must be of the 
present year’s growth, or 
young wood; if from 
bearing trees, take the 
new growth from the ends 
or tops of the limb—not 
suckers from main limbs 
or trunk of tree. Cut any 
time after leaves fall, say 
during November or De¬ 
cember; tie in bundles of 
50 or 100 limbs, pack in 
damp (not wet) moss, ex¬ 
celsior or sawdust, and 
keep them in cool cellar 
where there is no danger 
of growth starting. Buy 
the best American-grown 
stocks, free from woolly 
aphis or hairy root; pack 
them away the same as 
your scions until ready 
for use. Make some graft¬ 
ing wax, composed of 
one pint of raw linseed 
oil (or one pound beef tal¬ 
low), two pounds of bees¬ 
wax, and three pounds 
best resin; if less quantity 
is wanted use the above 
proportions. Be sure to 
stir and watch this wax 
while cooking, as it is 
very apt to boil over, and 
is very inflammable. When 
a root-grafted tree. And to this day planters are de¬ 
manding budded apple trees, when they buy, but as a 
rule they are unable to distinguish a root-graft from a 
bud when it is two or more years old. 
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HOW, TO MAKE ROOT-GRAFTS—THREE KINDS. Fig. 397. 
