1 Fers., 1898.] QUEENSLAND AGRICULTURAL JOURNAL. 121 
The Orchard. 
PROPAGATION OF FRUIT TREES. 
By ALBERT H. BENSON.* 
AurnoucH it is a difficult matter to bring forward any new ideas respecting a 
branch of horticulture that has been so extensively written about as the propa- 
ation of fruit trees, it is my intention to deal with this very important question 
a a somewhat unusual standpoint. In my opinion, it is both unnecessary and. 
useless to take up the time of this Association by a detailed description of the 
various methods of propagating fruit trees now in vogue by nurserymen, 
gardeners, and orchardists throughout the world, as this is a matter that has 
been fully described and written about over and over again by competent 
authorities; so that I purpose confining my remarks to one or two branches of 
the subject that have not received the attention they are justly entitled to—at 
all events, as far as Australasia is concerned. The special branches of the subject 
that I purpose dealing with are—First, the selection of the stock; second, the 
selection of the scion; and thirdly, the development of new and the improve- 
ment of existing varieties of fruits. 
THE SELECTION OF THE STOCK. 
This is a matter of vital importance, and one that seldom receives the 
careful consideration it should, as not only should the stock be chosen that 
assimilates most readily with the scion, and thus forms a complete and perfect 
union with it, but it should also be the one that is best adapted to the soil in 
which the tree is to be permanently planted; and in addition to these qualifi- 
cations, there is one other of even greater importance, and that is the constitu- 
tional vigour of the stock itself. 
I am strongly in favour of exercising the greatest possible care in the 
selection of stocks possessing strong constitutions, as it is on the constitution 
of the stock that the future vigour, freedom from disease, and length of life _ 
of the tree largely depend. Seedlings. make the best of all stocks—not 
seedlings raised indiscriminately, but seedlings that are grown from carefully 
selected seeds that have been obtained from vigorous healthy trees that are 
known to be constitutionally robust, as the seedlings produced from such 
seeds are more likely to produce healthy vigorous stocks than those grown from 
seeds that have been taken indiscriminately from any fruits that are available. 
‘Stocks are often raised from cuttings or by means of root-grafting, but such 
never possess as good a root-system as the seedling, nor have they the same 
vitality or inherent vigour. But when it is desirable to produce stocks by 
these means, every care should be taken to obtain the cuttings from strong- 
growing, healthy, vigorous trees. Be particularly careful to obtain both seeds 
and cuttings from healthy trees, as'many of the most troublesome diseases of 
fruit trees are transmitted from parent to offspring, especially in the ease of 
citrus and stone fruits. These remarks do not refer to any particular variety 
of fruit, but to all fruits, as, no matter what kind of fruit you are propagating, 
if you wish to maintain a high standard of excellence, you must use selected 
stocks and these stocks, must be selected in the manner I have just described. 
‘ * Read at the recent meeting of the Australasian Association for the Advancement of 
Science, held in Sydney during January, 1898. . 
