12 
COLORADO EXPERIMENT STATION 
would hardly seem practical. The method of grafting in this case 
is whip-grafting. 
GRAFTING 
In grafting young trees in the field it is probably well to do 
it as early in the life of a tree as possible. As soon as a good strong 
framework can be secured the tree is ready for top-working. The 
small size of the stubs make cleft-grafting difficult and kerf-grafting 
almost out of the question. Some growers, however, 
report good success in cleft-grafting young trees 
after two year’s growth from a yearling whip. In 
this case the stubs must be bound with waxed cloth 
or other material to hold the cion firmly, and then 
waxed as in cleft-grafting larger stubs. 
Another style of grafting, known as whip¬ 
grafting, is well adapted to working these small 
stubs of young trees. The process is well illustrated 
in Fig. 6. With this style of grafting it may be 
possible to set the cions after one year’s growth in 
the field, but it is doubtful whether much time will 
be gained by such practice. The cion should be as 
near the size of the stub as possible, if anything, a 
little smaller. The cambium of the stock and cion is 
matched only on one side, paying no attention to 
the other. The joint should be well wrapped with 
waxed cloth and to be doubly sure all air is excluded, 
may be painted over with a warm wax. 
In grafting young trees it is a common practice 
to remove all of the top, placing cions in those arms 
one wishes to keep. It is always well to work a few 
extra stubs as accidents may befall some of the 
cions. The season for top-grafting the young trees is the same as 
for old trees. While top-working the old trees tends to hasten the 
bearing of the cions, it is doubtful whether top-working young trees 
induces earlier fruitfulness. 
BUDDING 
This is no doubt the simpler method of putting a new top on 
young trees. While the process of budding is a little more delicate 
than that of grafting, the average man can, with a little practice, get 
very satisfactory results. Buds should be placed as soon as the top 
is well formed, setting one or two in each scaffold limb that is to 
be retained. The buds are generally set from six to twelve inches 
from the main stem, depending on the formation of the head. Trees 
two years old when set may generally be budded the following fall, 
and should yearling whips make a strong growth, the arms may be 
large enough to receive buds in September. Any stem as large as 
a lead-pencil may be budded quite easily. Arms in which buds fail 
to start may be grafted the following spring. Should arms fail to 
appear in the proper place it is quite possible to supply them by 
setting buds directly into the body of the young tree. When the 
