CHAPTER V.

GRAFTAGE.

=Graftage.=--The process or operation of grafting or budding, or the state or condition of being grafted or budded.

=Grafting.=--The operation of inserting a bud or a cion in a stock. It is commonly restricted to the operation of inserting cions of two or more buds, in distinction from budding, or the operation of inserting a single bud in the stock; but there are no essential differences between the two operations.

=Stock.=--In graftage, a plant or part of a plant upon which a cion or bud is set. A _free stock_ is a seedling, in distinction from a grafted stock.

=Cion or Scion.=--A portion of a plant which is mechanically inserted upon the same or another plant (stock) with the intention that it shall grow.

GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS.--Graftage is rarely employed for the propagation of the species, as seedage and cuttage are more expeditious and cheaper. Its chief use is to perpetuate a variety which does not reproduce itself from seeds and which cannot be economically grown from cuttings.

Nearly all the named varieties of tree fruits and many of those of ornamental trees and shrubs are perpetuated by means of graftage. In some species which present no marked varieties, however, propagation by seeds or cuttings is for various reasons so difficult or uncertain that recourse must be had to graftage. This is particularly true in many of the firs and spruces which do not produce seeds to any extent in cultivation. In other cases graftage is performed for the purpose of producing some radical change in the character or habit of the plants, as in the dwarfing of pears by grafting them upon the quince, the elevation of weeping tops by working them upon upright trunks, and the acceleration of fruit-bearing by setting cions in old plants. It is sometimes employed to aid the healing of wounds or to repair and fill out broken tops. And it has been used to make infertile plants fertile, by grafting in the missing sex in diœcious trees, or a variety with more potent pollen as practiced in some of the native plums. All these uses of graftage fall under three heads: 1. To perpetuate a variety. 2. To increase ease and speed of multiplication. 3. To produce some radical change in nature or habit of cion or stock.

Probably all exogenous plants--those which possess a distinct bark and pith--can be grafted. Plants must be more or less closely related to each other to allow of successful graftage of the one upon the other. What the affinities are in any case can be known only by experiment. As a rule, plants of close botanical relationship, especially those of the same genus, graft upon each other with more or less ease; yet this relationship is by no means a safe guide. A plant will often thrive better upon a species of another genus than upon a congener. The pear, for instance, does better upon many thorns than upon the apple. Sometimes plants of very distinct genera unite readily. Thus among cacti the leafless epiphyllum grows remarkably well upon the leaf-bearing pereskia. It should be borne in mind that union of tissues is not a proof of affinity. Affinity can be measured only by the thrift, healthfulness and longevity of the cion. The bean has been known to make a union with the chrysanthemum, but it almost immediately died. Soft tissues, in particular, often combine in plants which possess no affinity whatever, as we commonly understand the term. Neither does affinity refer to relative sizes or rates of growth of stock and cion, although the term is sometimes used in this sense. It cannot be said that some varieties of pear lack affinity for the quince, and yet the pear cion grows much larger than the stock. In fact, it is just this difference in size and rate of growth which constitutes the value of the quince root for dwarfing the pear. When there is a marked difference in rate of growth between the stock and cion, an enlargement will occur in the course of time, either above or below the union. If this occurs upon the stem, it makes an unsightly tree. If the cion greatly outgrows the stock a weak tree is the result.

Graftage can be performed at almost any time of the year, but the practice must be greatly varied to suit the season and other conditions. The one essential point is to make sure that the cambium layers, lying between the bark and wood, meet as nearly as possible in the cion and stock. This cambium is always present in live parts, forming woody substance from its inner surface and bark from its outer surface. During the season of greatest growth it usually occurs as a soft, mucilaginous and more or less unorganized substance, and in this stage it most readily repairs and unites wounded surfaces. And for this reason the grafting and budding of old trees are usually performed in the spring. Later in the season, the cambium becomes firmer and more differentiated, and union of woody parts is more uncertain. It is also necessary to cover the wounds in order to check evaporation from the tissues. In out-door work wax is commonly used for all species of graftage which wound the wood itself, but in budding, the loosened bark, bound down securely by a bandage, affords sufficient protection. It is commonly supposed that an ordinary cleft-graft cannot live if the bark of the stock immediately adjoining it is seriously wounded, but the bark really serves little purpose beyond protection of the tissues beneath. A cion will grow when the bark is entirely removed from the stub if some adequate protection can be given which will not interfere with the formation of new bark. The cion must always possess at least one good bud. In most cases, only buds which are mature or nearly so are used, but in the grafting of herbs very young buds may be employed. These simple requirements can be satisfied in an almost innumerable variety of ways. The cion or bud may be inserted in the root, crown, trunk or any of the branches; it may be set under the bark simply or inserted into the wood itself in almost any fashion; and the operation may be performed either upon growing or dormant plants at any season. But in practice there are comparatively few methods which are sufficiently simple and expeditious to admit of general use.

Graftage may be divided into three general divisions, between which, however, there are no decisive lines of separation: 1. Bud-grafting or budding, in which a single bud is inserted upon the surface of the wood of the stock. 2. Cion-grafting or grafting proper, in which a detached twig bearing one or more buds is inserted into or upon the stock. 3. Inarching or grafting by approach, in which the cion remains attached to the parent plant until union takes place. Each of these divisions can be almost endlessly varied and sub-divided, but in this discussion only the leading practices can be detailed. The following enumeration, after Baltet, will give a fair idea of the kinds of grafting which have been employed under distinct names:

1. Bud-Grafting or Budding.

1.--Grafting with shield-buds. Bud-grafting under the bark, or by inoculation. " " ordinary method. " " with a cross-shaped incision. " " " the incision reversed. " " by veneering. Bud-grafting, the combined or double method. 2.--Flute-grafting. " " common method. " " with strips of bark.

2. Cion-Grafting or Grafting Proper.

1.--Side-grafting under the bark. " " with a simple branch. " " with a heeled branch. " " in the alburnum. " " with a straight cleft. " " with an oblique cleft. 2.--Crown-grafting. Ordinary method. Improved method. 3.--Grafting _de precision_. Veneering, common method. " in crown-grafting. " with strips of bark. Crown-grafting by inlaying. Side-grafting by inlaying. 4.--Cleft-grafting, common single.

Cleft-grafting, common double. " " oblique. " " terminal. " " " woody. " " " herbaceous. 5.--Whip-grafting, simple. " " complex. Saddle-grafting. 6.--Mixed-grafting. Grafting with cuttings. When the cion is a cutting. When the stock is a cutting. When both are cuttings. Root-grafting of a plant on its own root. " " " " the roots of another plant. Grafting with fruit buds.

3. Inarching or Grafting by Approach.

1.--Method by veneering. " " inlaying. English method. 2.--Inarching with an eye. " " a branch.

=Particular Methods.=--_Budding._ Budding is the operation of inserting a single bud, bearing little or no wood, upon the surface of the stock. The bud is nearly always inserted under the bark of the stock, but in flute-budding a piece of bark is entirely removed and the bud is used to cover the wound. There is no general rule to determine what species of plants should be budded and which ones cion grafted. In fact, the same species is often multiplied by both operations. Plants with thin bark and an abundance of sap are likely to do best when grafted; or if they are budded, the buds should be inserted at a season when the sap is least abundant to prevent the "strangulation" or "throwing out" of the bud. In such species the bark is not strong enough to hold the bud firmly until it unites; and solid union does not take place until the flow of sap lessens. Budding is largely employed upon nearly all young fruit-trees, and almost universally so upon the stone-fruits. It is also used in roses, and many ornamental trees. Budding is commonly performed during the growing season, usually in late summer or early fall, because mature buds can be procured at that time and young stocks are then large enough to be worked readily. But budding can be done in early spring, just as soon as the bark loosens; in this case perfectly dormant buds must have been taken in winter. Budding is always best performed when the bark slips or peels easily. It can be done when the bark is tight, but the operation is then tedious and uncertain.

Shield-budding.--There is but one style of budding in general use in this country. This is known as shield-budding, from the shield-like shape of the portion of bark which is removed with the bud. Technically, the entire severed portion, comprising both bark and bud, is called a "bud." A shield bud is shown natural size in Fig. 61. This is cut from a young twig of the present season's growth. It is inserted underneath the bark of a young stock or branch, and is then securely tied, as shown in Fig. 65.

The minor details of shield-budding differ with nearly every operator. In commercial practice, it is performed in the north from early July until the middle of September. In the southern states it usually begins in June. As a rule, apples and pears are budded before peaches. This is due to the fact that peach-stocks are nearly always budded the same season the pits are planted, and the operation must be delayed until the stocks are large enough to be worked. Most other fruit-stocks, especially apples and pears, are not budded until two years after the seeds are sown. The plants grow for the first season in a seed-bed. The next spring they are transplanted into nursery rows, and budded when they become large enough, which is usually the same year they are transplanted. The nurseryman reckons the age of his stock from the time of transplanting, and the age of the marketable tree from the time when the buds or grafts begin to grow. The young stocks are "dressed" or trimmed before being set into the nursery. This operation consists in cutting off a fourth or third of the top and the tap root. This causes the roots to spread and induces a vigorous growth of top because it reduces the numbers of shoots; and such stocks are more expeditiously handled than long and untrimmed ones.

Stocks should be at least three-eighths inch in diameter to be budded with ease. Just before the buds are set, the leaves are removed from the base of the stock so that they will not interfere with the operation. They are usually rubbed off with the hand for a space of five or six inches above the ground. They should not be removed more than two or three days in advance of budding, else the growth of the parts will be checked and the bark will set; any branches, too, as in the quince, which might impede the work of the budder, are to be cut off at the same time. The bud is inserted an inch or two above the surface of the ground or as low down as the budder can work. The advantage of setting the bud low is to bring the resulting crook or union where it will not be seen. It is a common and good practice, also, to place the bud upon the north side of the stock to shield it from the sun.

The buds are taken from strong and well-hardened shoots of the season's growth and of the desired variety. Usually the whole of the present growth is cut, the leaves are removed, but a part of the petiole or stalk of each leaf is left (as in Figs. 61 and 62) to serve as a handle to the bud. This trimmed shoot is then called a "stick." A stick may bear two dozen good buds when the growth has been strong, but only ten or twelve buds are commonly secured. The upper buds, which are commonly not fully grown and which are borne on soft wood, are usually discarded. The buds are cut with a thin-bladed sharp knife. Various styles of budding knives are in use, and the budder usually has decided preferences for some particular pattern. The essentials of a good budding-knife are these: the very best steel, a thin blade which has a curved cutting end (as shown in Figs. 63 and 66), and lightness. The curved end of the blade is used for making the incisions in the stock. The handle of the budding-knife usually runs into a thin bone scalpel at the end, and this portion is designed for the lifting or loosening of the bark on the stock. Some budders, however, raise the bark with the blade. A good form of blade, but one seldom made, has a rounded end, the upper side of the curve being ground simply to a thin edge. This blade may be used both for cutting the bark and loosening it, thus overcoming the necessity of reversing the knife every time a bud is set. If this form of blade were commonly known it would undoubtedly soon come into favor. The blade of a common budding-knife can be ground to this shape.

The bud is usually cut about an inch long. Most budders cut from below upwards, but some prefer to make a downward incision. It does not matter just how the bud is cut, if the surfaces are smooth and even and the bud is not too thick. On a stick a fourth or three-eighths inch through, the cut, at its deepest point just under the bud, is about one-fourth the diameter of the twig. A bit of wood is therefore removed with the bud, as shown in Fig. 61. There is some discussion as to whether this wood should be left upon the bud, but no definite experiments have been made to show that it is injurious to the resulting tree. Some budders remove the wood with the point of the knife or by a deft twist as the bud is removed from the stick. But buds appear to live equally well with wood attached or removed. Some propagators cut the buds as they go, while others prefer to cut a whole stick before setting any, letting each bud hang by a bit of bark at the top and which is cut off squarely when wanted, as shown in Fig. 62.

The wound or matrix which is to receive the bud is made by two incisions, one vertical and one transverse (Fig. 63). These are light cuts, extending only through the bark. The vertical slit is usually made first and by the rounded end of the blade. This is an inch or inch and a half long. The transverse cut is made across the top of the vertical cut by one rocking motion of the blade towards the body. The corners of the bark may be lifted a little by an outward motion of the blade so as to allow the bud to be pushed in, but unless the bark slips very freely it will have to be loosened by the end of the blade or by the scalpel on the reverse end of the handle, as previously described. The bud is now inserted in the cleft of the bark. It is pushed down part way by the fingers, as in Fig. 64, but it is usually driven home by pushing down upon the leaf-stalk handle with the back of the knife-blade. The entire bud should pass into the cleft; or if a portion of it should project above it should be cut off. If the bark peels freely, the bud will slip in easily and will follow the cleft, but if it sticks somewhat, more care is necessary to prevent the bud from running out. If the bark is very tight, it may have to be loosened with the knife throughout the length of the cleft; but budding should be performed, if possible, when such pains are not necessary.

The bud must now be tied. The whole matrix should be closed and bound securely, as represented in Fig. 65. The dotted lines parallel with the cleft show the extent to which the bud projects under the bark. The string is usually started below the bud, the end being held by lapping the second course over it, and the upper end being secured by drawing a bow through under the upper course. Care should be taken not to bind the string over the bud itself. The strings are previously cut the required length--about a foot--and the tying is performed very quickly. Any soft cord can be employed. Yarn and carpet warp are sometimes used. The most common material, at least until the last few years, has been bass matting. This is the inner bark of the bass-wood or linden. The bark is stripped in early summer, and the inner portion is macerated or "rotted" in water for four or five weeks. It is then removed, cut into the desired lengths, and stripped into narrow bands--one-fourth to one-half inch wide--when it may be sorted and stored away for future use. If it is stiff and harsh when it comes from the maceration, it should be pounded lightly or rubbed through the hands until it becomes soft and pliable. The best tying material which we now have is undoubtedly raffia. It is an imported article, coming from the eastern tropics (the product of the palm _Raphia Ruffia_), but it is so cheap that it will probably supersede even bass-bark. It is strong and pliable, and is an excellent material for tying up plants in the greenhouse, or small ones out-doors. The greatest disadvantage in its use in the budding field is its habit of rolling when it becomes dry.

In two or three weeks after the bud is set it will have "stuck" or united to the stock. The bandage must then be removed or cut. It is the common practice to draw a budding-knife over the strings, on the side opposite the bud, completely severing them and allowing them to fall off as they will. If the strings are left on too long they will constrict the stem and often kill the bud, and they also have a tendency to cause the bud to "break" or begin to grow. The bud should remain perfectly dormant until spring, for if it should begin to grow it will be injured and perhaps killed by the winter. It should remain green and fresh; if it shrivels and becomes brown, even though it still adheres to the stock, it is worthless. Advantage can be taken, when cutting the tyings, to rebud any stocks which have failed. If the bud should begin to grow, because of a warm and wet fall or other reasons, there is little remedy except perhaps to head the shoot back if it should become long enough. If the stocks are protected by snow during winter, some of the buds at the base of the shoot may pass the cold in safety.

The next spring the stock should be cut off just above the bud (Fig. 66), in order to throw the entire force of the plant into the bud. If the root is strong and the soil good, the bud will grow two or three feet the first year; or peaches and cherries will grow from two to three times that height. All sprouts should be kept rubbed off the stock, and the bud should be trained to a single stem. In some weak and crooked growers, the new shoot must be tied, and some propagators in such cases cut off the stock five or six inches above the bud and let it serve as a stake to which to tie. The stock, of course, must not be allowed to grow. Late in the season the stock is cut down close to the bud, as in Fig. 66. Peaches and some other fruits are sold after having made one season's growth from the bud, but pears, apples, and most other trees are not often sold until the second or third year.

"June budding" is a term applied to the budding of stocks in early summer while they are yet growing rapidly. It is employed mostly at the south where the stocks can be grown to sufficient size by the last of June or first of July. Small stocks are usually employed--those ranging from one-fourth to one-third inch being preferred. A few strong leaves should be left on the stock below the bud, and after the bud has "stuck" the whole top should not be cut off at once, else the growing plant will receive a too severe check. It is best to bend the top over to check its growth or remove the leaves gradually. The bandages should not be left on longer than six to ten days if the stock is growing rapidly. To prevent the constriction of the stem, muslin bands are sometimes used instead of bass or raffia. In hot and dry climates the bud should be set an inch or two higher in June budding than in the ordinary practice, to escape the great heat of the soil. June budding is used upon the peach more than any other tree, although it can be employed for any species which will give large enough stocks from seed by the June following the sowing. In peaches, the bud will produce a shoot from three to five feet high the same season the buds are set, so that marketable budded trees can be produced in one season from the seed.

A different kind of early summer budding is sometimes performed upon apples and other fruit-trees. In this case the stocks are one or two years old from the transplanting, and dormant buds are used. These buds are cut the previous fall or winter in the same manner as cions, and when spring approaches they are put on ice--in sawdust, sand or moss--and kept until the stocks are large enough to receive them. The particular advantage of this method is the distributing of the labor of budding over a longer season, thereby avoiding the rush which often occurs at the regular budding time.

Budders usually carry a number of "sticks" with them when they enter the nursery. These may be carried in the pocket, or thrust into the boot-leg; or some budders carry four or five sticks in the hand. The budder follows a row throughout its length, passing over those trees which are too small to work. It is a common practice to rest upon one knee while budding, as shown in Fig. 67, but some prefer to use a low stool. The tying is usually done by a boy, who should follow close behind the budder in order that the buds shall not dry out. An expert budder will set from 1,000 to 3,000 buds a day, in good stock, and with a boy (or two of them for the latter speed) to tie. Peach stocks are more rapidly budded than most others, as the bark is firm and slips easily, and some remarkable records are made by skillful workmen.

Budding is sometimes employed the same as top-grafting for changing over the top of an old tree from one variety to another. The buds cannot be easily inserted in very old and stiff bark, but in all smooth and fresh bark they work readily. Sometimes old trees are severely pruned the year before the budding is to be done, in order to obtain young shoots in which to set the buds. In fruit-trees six or seven years old or less, budding is fully as advantageous as grafting. New varieties are also budded into old branches in order to hasten bearing for the purpose of testing the variety. Here budding has a distinct advantage over grafting, as it uses fewer buds, and the wood of new sorts is often scarce.

Flute-Budding.--An occasional method of budding is that known under the general name of flute-budding. In this method the bud is not covered by the bark of the stock as in shield-budding. Fig. 68 illustrates it. A portion of bark is removed entirely from the stock, and a similar piece is fitted into its place. When the wound extends only part way about the stem, as in the illustration, the operation is sometimes known as veneer-budding. When it extends entirely around the stem it is called ring or annular-budding. Flute-budding is usually performed late in spring. It is best adapted to plants with very thick and heavy bark. The bud is tied and afterwards treated in essentially the same manner as in shield-budding.

A species of flute-budding in which a ring of bark is slipped down upon the tip of a shoot, which has been girdled for the purpose, is called whistle-budding or tubular-budding.

_Grafting._--Grafting is divided in various ways, but chiefly with reference to the position of the union upon the plant and to the method in which the scion and stock are joined. In reference to position, there are four general classes: 1. Root-grafting, in which the stock is entirely a root. 2. Crown-grafting, which is performed upon the crown or collar of the plant just at the surface of the ground, an operation which is often confounded with root-grafting. 3. Stem-grafting, in which the cion is set on the trunk or body of the tree below the limbs, a method occasionally employed with young trees. 4. Top-grafting, or grafting in the branches of the tree. Any method of inserting the cion may be employed in these classes. The best classification, particularly for purposes of description, is that which considers methods of making the union. Some of these kinds of grafting are catalogued on page 66. For our purposes, we shall need to consider only the whip, saddle, splice, veneer, cleft and bark-grafting.

Whip-Grafting.--Whip or tongue-grafting is employed only on small stocks, usually upon those one or two years old. Both the cion and stock are cut across diagonally, the cut surface extending from one to two inches according to the size of the part. A vertical cleft is then made in both, and the two are joined by shoving the tongue of the cion into the cleft of the stock. The operation can be understood by reference to Figs. 69, 70 and 71. Fig. 69 shows the end of a cion, cut natural size. The stock is cut in the same manner, and the two are joined in Figs. 70 and 71. The parts are held firmly by a bandage passed five or six times around them. If the graft is to stand above ground, the wound must be protected by applying wax over the bandage. (Recipes for wax can be found at the end of this chapter.)

Root-grafting, especially of fruit-stocks, is performed almost entirely by the whip-graft. This operation is performed in winter. The stocks, either one or two years old, are dug and stored in the fall. In January or February the grafting is begun. In true root-grafting, only pieces of roots are used, but some prefer to use the whole root and graft at the crown. In piece-root-grafting, from two to four trees are made from a single root. A piece of root from two to four inches long is used, as shown in Fig. 71. The parts are usually held by winding with waxed string or waxed bands. The string should be strong enough to hold the parts securely and yet weak enough to be broken without hurting the hands. No. 18 knitting cotton answers this purpose admirably. It should be bought in balls, which are allowed to stand for a few minutes in melted wax. The wax soon saturates the ball. Waxed bands are made by spreading melted wax over thin muslin, which is cut into narrow strips when dry. The string is the more useful for rapid work. The grafts are packed away in sand, moss or sawdust in a cool cellar until spring, when the two parts will be firmly callused together. Some propagators are now discarding all tying of root-grafts. The grafts are packed away snugly, and if the storage cellar is cool--not above 40°--they will knit together so that they can be planted without danger of breaking apart. If the cellar is warm the grafts will start into growth and be lost.

Cions are cut in fall or winter, or any time before the buds swell in spring. Only the previous year's growth is used in all ordinary cases, but in maples and some other trees older wood may be used. In the grafting of peaches--which is very rarely done--the best cions are supposed to be those which bear a small portion of two-year-old at the lower end. This portion of old wood probably serves no other purpose than a mechanical one, as the recent wood is soft and pithy. It is a common opinion that cions are worthless if cut during freezing weather, but this is unfounded. The cions are stored in sand, moss or sawdust in a cool cellar, or they may be buried in a sandy place. Or sometimes, when a few are wanted for top-grafting, they are thrust into the ground beside the tree into which they are to be set the following spring. Only well-formed and mature buds should be used. Sometimes flower-buds are inserted for the purpose of fruiting a new or rare variety the following year.

In common root-grafting in the east and south, the cion bears about three buds, and the root is about the same length, or perhaps shorter. The variable and unknown character of these roots as regards hardiness, renders it important in very severe climates that roots should be obtained from the same plant as the cion, the hardiness of which is known. It is, therefore, the practice in the prairie countries to use a very long cion--eight inches to a foot--and to set it in the ground to the top bud. The piece of root serves as a temporary support, and roots are emitted along the cion. When the tree is ready for sale the old piece of root is often removed, or sometimes it falls away of itself. In this manner own-rooted trees are obtained, and it is for this reason that root-grafting is more universally practiced west of the Great Lakes than budding. Even cions of ordinary length often emit roots, as seen in Fig. 72, but the cions are not long enough to reach into uniformly moist soil. Some varieties of fruit-trees are found in practice to root more readily than others.

There is much discussion as to the relative merits of budding and root-grafting fruit-stocks, but the observations are usually so indefinite or irrelevant that safe conclusions cannot be drawn from them. We have seen that root-grafting serves an indispensable purpose in the cold prairie regions by enabling nurserymen to secure own-rooted trees of known hardiness. Aside from this it may be said that root-grafting is cheaper than budding, as it is performed when labor is cheap and two or more trees are made from one stock, Budded or crown-grafted trees possess a greater root and usually make a stronger growth, at least the first year or two, and it has been said that their roots are more numerous and more symmetrically disposed. But there is not yet a sufficient knowledge of the subject in all its details to allow of dogmatic expressions upon it.

Saddle-Grafting.--Saddle-grafting is a simple and useful method for the shoots of small, growing plants. The stock is cut to a wedge-shaped end by two cuts, and the cion is split and set upon the wedge (Fig. 73). The union is then tied and waxed in the same way as exposed whip-grafts. It is oftenest employed when a terminal bud is used, as the wood in such cions is usually too weak to work well with a tongue.

Splice-Grafting.--The simplest form of grafting is that shown in Fig. 74, in which the two parts are simply cut across diagonally and laid together. The parts are held only by the string, which, together with the wax, is applied in the same way as upon the whip-graft. Splice-grafting is frequently used upon soft or tender wood which will not admit of splitting. It is adapted only to small shoots.

Veneer-Grafting.--Fig. 75 shows a style of grafting which is much used, particularly for ornamentals and for rare stocks which are grown in pots. An incision is made upon the stock just through the bark and about an inch long (_A_, Fig. 75), the bit of bark being removed by means of a downward sloping cut at its base. The base of the cion is cut off obliquely, and upon the longest side a portion of bark is removed, corresponding to the portion taken from the stock. The little tongue of bark on the stock covers the base of the cion, when it is set. The cion is tied tightly to the stock (_B_, Fig. 75), usually with raffia. This method of grafting makes no incision into the wood, and all the wounded surfaces are completely covered by the matching of the cion and stock. It is not necessary, therefore, to wax over the wounds, as a rule. The parts grow together quickly and uniformly, making a solid and perfect union as shown at _D_, Fig. 75. So far as the union of the parts is concerned, this is probably the ideal method of grafting. This method, which is nothing but the side-graft of the English gardeners with the most important condition of the longer tongue on the stock, is known by various names, but it is oftenest called veneer-grafting in this country.

Veneer-grafting is employed mostly from November to March upon potted plants. Stocks which are grown out-doors are potted in the early fall and carried in a cool house or pit. The cion is applied an inch or two above the surface of the soil, and the stock need not be headed back until the cion has united. (See Fig. 76.) Both dormant and growing cions are used. All plants in full sap must be placed under a frame in the house, in which they can be almost entirely buried with sphagnum, not too wet, and the house must be kept cool and rather moist until the cions are well established. Some species can be transferred to the open border or to nursery rows in the spring, but most plants which are grafted in this way are handled in pots during the following season. Rhododendrons, Japanese maples and many conifers are some of the plants which are multiplied by veneer-grafting. This method, when used with hardy or tender plants, gives a great advantage in much experimental work, because the stock is not at all injured by a failure and can be used over again many times, perhaps even in the same season; the manipulation is simple and easily acquired by inexperienced hands.

Cleft-Grafting.--In cleft-grafting the stock is cut off squarely and split, and into the split a cion with a wedge-shaped base is inserted. It is particularly adapted to large stocks and is the method universally employed for top-grafting old trees. Fig. 77 represents the operation. The end of the stock, technically called a "stub," is usually large enough to accommodate two cions, one upon either side. In fact, it is better to use two cions, not only because they double the chances of success but because they hasten the healing of the stub. Cleft-grafting is at best a harsh process, especially upon large limbs, and its evils should be mitigated as much as possible. In common practice, the cion (Fig. 78) contains three buds, the lowest one standing just above the wedge portion. This lowest bud is usually entirely covered with wax, but it pushes through without difficulty. In fact, being nearest the source of food and most protected, its chances of living are greater than those of the higher buds. The sides of the cion must be cut smoothly and evenly. A single draw cut on each side with a sharp blade is much better than two or three partial cuts. A good grafter makes a cion by three strokes of the knife, one to cut off the cion and two to shape it. The outer edge of the wedge should be a little thicker than the inner one so that the stock will bind upon it and hold it firm at the point where the union first takes place. These cions are taken in late fall or winter, and kept in the same manner as directed for whip-grafting on pages 77 and 78.

The stock or stub must be cut off squarely and smoothly with a sharp and preferably fine-toothed saw. If one desires to be especially careful in the operation, the end of the stub, or at least two opposite sides of it, may be dressed off with a knife so that the juncture between the bark and the wood may be more easily seen. Professional grafters rarely resort to this practice, however. The stub is then split to the depth of an inch and a half or two inches. Various styles of "grafting-knife" are used to split the stub. The best one is that shown in Fig. 79. It is commonly made from an old file by a blacksmith. The blade is curved so that the bark of the stub is drawn in when the knife is entering, thereby lessening the danger of loosening the bark. Upon the end of the knife is a wedge, about four or five inches long, for opening the cleft. The wedge is driven into the cleft and allowed to remain while the cions are being placed. If the cleft does not open wide enough to allow the cions to enter, the operator bears down on the handle of the knife. The cions must be thrust down to the first bud, or even deeper, and it is imperative that they fit tightly. The line of separation between the bark and wood in the cion should meet as nearly as possible the similar line in the stock. The cions are usually set a trifle obliquely, the tops projecting outwards, to ensure the contact of the cambium layers. Writers usually state that it is imperative to success to have the exact lines between the bark and wood meet for at least the greater part of their length, but this is an error. The callus or connecting tissue spreads beyond its former limits when the wounds begin to heal. The most essential points are rather to be sure that the cion fits tightly throughout its whole length, and to protect the wound completely with an air-tight covering.

The wounds must now be covered with wax. Fig. 80 illustrates a stub after the covering has been applied. If the grafting is done in early spring when the weather is cold, the wax will have to be applied with a brush. The wax is melted in a glue-pot, which is carried into the tree. But if the weather is warm enough to soften the wax, it should be applied with the hands. The hands are first greased to prevent the wax from sticking. The two side or vertical portions are applied first. The end of the mass of wax in the hand is flattened into a thin portion about a half inch wide. This portion is then laid over the bud and held there by the thumb of the other hand, while the wax is drawn downwards over the cleft, being pressed down firmly upon the bark by the thumb of the first hand. The wax gradually tails out until it breaks off just below the lowest point of the cleft. The flattened upper part is then wrapped around the cion upon either side, completely and tightly encircling it. A simple deft wrapping of the wax about the cion makes a tighter joint than can be secured in twice the time by any method of pinching it into place. Another portion of wax is now flattened and applied over the end of the stub. Many grafters apply a bit of wax to the tops of the cion also. All the wounds must be covered securely.

The top-grafting of large trees is an important operation, and there are many men who make it a business. These men usually charge by the stub and warrant, the warrant meaning that one cion of the stub must be alive when the counting is done late in summer. From two to three cents a stub is a common price. A good grafter in good "setting" can graft from 400 to 800 stubs a day and wax them himself. Much depends upon the size of the trees, their shape, and the amount of pruning which must be done before the grafter can work in them handily. Every man who owns an orchard of any extent should be able to do his own grafting. The most important factor in the top-grafting of an old tree is the shaping of the top. The old top is to be removed during three or four or five years and a new one is to be grown in its place. If the tree is old, the original plan or shape of the top will have to be followed in its general outlines. The branches should be grafted, as a rule, where they do not exceed an inch and a half in diameter, as cions do better in such branches, the wounds heal quickly and the injury to the tree is less than when very large stubs are used. The operator should endeavor to cut all the leading stubs at approximately equal distances from the center of the tree. And then, to prevent the occurrence of long and pole-like branches, various minor side-branches should be grafted. These will serve to fill out the new top and to afford footholds for pruners and pickers. Fig. 81 is a good illustration of an old apple tree just top-grafted. Many stubs should be set, and at least all the prominent branches should be grafted if the tree has been well-trained. It is better to have too many stubs and to be obliged to cut out some of them in after years, than to have too few. In thick-topped trees, care must be exercised not to cut out so much the first year that the inner branches will sunburn. All large branches which must be sacrificed ought to be cut out when the grafting is done, as they increase in diameter very rapidly after so much of the top is removed. One horizontal branch lying directly over or under another should not be grafted, for it is the habit of grafts to grow upright rather than horizontally in the direction of the branch. It is well to split all stubs on such branches horizontally, that one cion may not stand directly under another.

Top-grafting is performed in spring. The best time is when the leaves are pushing out, as wounds made then heal quickly and cions are most apt to live. But when a large amount of grafting must be done, it is necessary to begin a month or even two before the leaves start. On the other hand, the operation can be extended until a month or more after the leaves are full-grown, but such late cions make a short growth, which is likely to perish the following winter. Professional grafters usually divide their men into three gangs, one to do the cutting of the stubs, one to set the cions, and one to apply the wax. The cions are all whittled before the grafter enters the tree. They are then usually moistened by dipping into a pail of water and are carried in a high side-pocket in the jacket. The handiest mallet is a simple club or billy, a foot and a half long, hung over the wrist by a loose soft cord (Fig 82). This is brought into the palm of the hand by a swinging motion of the forearm. This mallet is always in place, never drops from the tree, and is not in the way. The knife shown in Fig. 79 is commonly used. A downward stroke of the mallet drives the knife into the tree and an upward motion immediately following strikes the knife on the outer end and removes it. Another downward motion drives in the wedge. The sharpened nails and sticks commonly pictured as wedges in cleft-grafting are useless for any serious work. And the common style of grafting-knife sold by seedsmen, comprising a thin, broad blade set in a heavy back piece, is also worthless. The blade is too thin to split the stub. The various combined implements which have been devised to facilitate cleft-grafting are usually impracticable in serious operations. A very good grafting-knife for small stocks or trees in nursery row is shown in Fig. 83. This is the Thomas knife. The larger arm is made entirely of wood. At its upper end is a grooved portion into which the blade closes. This blade can be made from the blade of a steel case-knife, and it should be about two and a half inches long. It is secured to an iron handle. The essential feature of this implement is the draw cut which is secured by setting the blades and the pivot in just the positions shown in the figure. The stock is cut off by the shears, and the cleft is then made by turning the shears up and making a vertical cut. The cleft is therefore cut instead of split, insuring a tight fit of the cions. This tool is particularly useful upon hard and crooked-grained stocks.

Cleft-grafting is often employed for other purposes than the top-grafting of old trees. It is in common use on soft and fleshy stocks, as cactuses, and various fleshy roots. Fig. 84 shows a cleft-graft on cactus. The cion is held in place with a pin or cactus spine, and it is then bound with raffia or other cord. Waxing is not necessary. Fig. 85 illustrates a cleft root-graft of peony. The cleft in the thick root is cut with a knife, and the stock is bound up securely, usually with wire, as cord, unless waxed, rots off too quickly. Wax is not used, as the graft is buried to the top bud. The peony is grafted in summer. Dahlias are often grafted after the same fashion, although some operators prefer, in such fleshy subjects, to cut out a section from the side of the stock to receive the cion, rather than to make a cleft. Hollyhocks, ipomœas, gloxinias and other thick-rooted plants may be similarly treated.

Bark-grafting.--A style of grafting suited to large trees is shown in Fig. 86. The stock is not cleft, but the cions are pushed down between the bark and wood.

The cion must be cut very thin so that they will not break the bark on the stock. Fig. 87 represents a good style of cion. It is cut to a shoulder upon either side. Several cions can be placed in a single stub, and as no splitting is necessary, it is a useful method for very large limbs. It is especially useful in repairing trees when very large branches are broken off. A dozen or more cions may be set about the broken portion, after it is dressed off, and a few of them may be allowed to remain after the wound has been healed. Bark-grafting can be performed to advantage only when the bark peels readily. The cions should be held in place by a tight bandage, as seen in Fig. 86, and then wax should be applied in essentially the same manner as for cleft-grafting. (See Fig. 80.) This is sometimes called crown-grafting, and is useful under certain conditions.

A special form of bark-grafting is sometimes employed for covering girdles about the base of an old tree, made by mice, gophers or rabbits. The edges of the bark are trimmed, and cions are cut a couple inches longer than the width of the girdle. These are sharpened at both ends. One end is inserted under the bark below the girdle and the other above it. The cions are placed close together entirely around the tree. This operation is said to be necessary to keep up the connection between the root and the top, but this is in most cases an error. A good dressing of cow-dung, wax or clay, held on with stout bandages, is much better than the grafting. This method of grafting is sometimes, but erroneously, called inarching. A complete girdle made during the spring or early summer will usually heal over readily if it is well bandaged; and in some cases even the bandage is not necessary.

Herbaceous-grafting.--In the preceding pages, the discussions have had to do with cions which are dormant or at least well-hardened, and with stocks which contain more or less hard woody substance. But herbaceous shoots can be grafted with ease. All such plants as geraniums, begonias, coleuses and chrysanthemums can be made to bear two or more varieties upon the same individual. Almost any style of grafting can be employed, but the veneer, cleft and saddle-grafts are preferred. Shoots should be chosen for stocks which are rather firm, or in the condition for making good cuttings. The cions should be in a similar condition, and they may be taken from the tips of branches or made of a section of a branch. The union should be bound snugly with raffia, and the plant set in a propagating frame, where it must be kept close for a few days. It is not necessary, in most cases, to use wax, and upon some tender stocks the wax is injurious. Moss may be bound about the graft, but unless the union is first thoroughly covered by the bandage, roots will start into the moss and the parts will fail to unite. The growing shoots of shrubs and trees can also be grafted, but the operation is rarely employed. In various coniferous trees (as pines and spruces) the young shoots are sometimes cleft or saddle-grafted in May, the parts being well bandaged with waxed muslin or raffia, and shaded with paper bags. The walnut and some other trees which do not work readily are sometimes treated in this manner.

A little known species of herbaceous-grafting is the joining of parts of fruits. It is easily performed upon all fleshy fruits like tomatoes, apples, squashes and cucumbers. When the fruit is half or more grown, one-half is cut away and a similar half from another fruit is applied. Better results follow if the severed side of the parent or stock fruit is hollowed out a little, so as to let the foreign piece set into the cavity. The edges of the epidermis of the stock are then tied up closely against the cion by means of bass or raffia. The two parts are securely tied together, but no wax is required. This operation succeeds best under glass, where conditions are uniform and winds do not blow the fruits about.

Even leaves may be used as stocks or cions. Any such succulent and permanent leaves as those of the house-leeks, crassula, and the like may have young shoots worked upon them, and leaves which are used as cuttings can often be made to grow on other plants.

Seed-grafting.--A novel kind of grafting has been described in France by Pieron, which consists in using a seed as a cion. This has been used upon the grape. A seed is dropped into a gimlet-hole made near the base of the vine while the sap is flowing in the spring. The seed germinates, and after a time the plantlet unites with the stock.

Double-grafting.--Grafting upon a grafted tree is known as double-grafting or double-working. It is employed for the purpose of growing a variety upon an uncongenial root or of securing a straight and vigorous stock for a weak and poor grower. Some sorts of pears do not unite well with the quince, and if it is desired to secure dwarfs of these varieties, some variety which unites readily with the quince must first be put upon it. The Angouleme takes well to the quince, and upon Angouleme dwarfs the Seckel and some other varieties are often worked. The last cion is usually set after the first one has grown one season, although both may be set at the same time. Double-grafting for the purpose of securing a better growth is often practiced. The Canada Red apple, for instance, is such a poor grower that it is often stem-worked or top-worked upon the Northern Spy or some other strong stock. The Winter Nelis and the Josephine de Malines pears are often double-worked for the same reason.

Cutting-grafting.--Cuttage and graftage are combined in various ways. Cuttings of plants which root with difficulty are sometimes grafted upon those which root easily. When the plants are transplanted, the following autumn or spring, the nurse or stock can be removed, the cion having taken root. Root-grafting with a long cion, described on a previous page (78), is virtually a grafting of cuttings. In other cases, union with an uncongenial stock is facilitated by allowing the cion to project downwards beyond the point of union and to stand in the soil or moss or a dish of water. Fig. 88 is a good illustration of the practice. The cion extends into the soil nearly as far as the root itself. After union has taken place, the lower part of the cion is removed. This method can be used for some magnolias, mulberries, birches, and many other plants of which some kinds root with more or less difficulty. Bottle-grafting, described in most of the books, is essentially this method, modified by letting the end of the cion drop into a bottle of water. Sometimes a portion of the bandage is allowed to hang in water, to keep the cion fresh until the parts join.

=Inarching.=--Inarching or grafting by approach is the process of grafting contiguous plants or branches while the parts are both attached to their own roots. When the parts are united, one of them is severed from its root. Fig. 89 explains the operation. In this case, the larger plant is designed for the stock. When the smaller plant has united, it is cut off just below the union and it thenceforth grows upon the other plant. Limbs of contiguous trees are sometimes grafted in this way. It is the process employed by nature in what is called natural grafting. Grape-vines are often inarched. A thrifty young branch may be inarched into the stem of a fruit upon the same tree, thus supplying the fruit with additional food and causing it to grow larger than it might if undisturbed.

To join the parts, it is only necessary to remove the barks between the stock and cion and then tie the two together snugly. If out-doors, the junction should be waxed over; and it is then necessary, also, to secure the branches in such manner that the wind cannot loosen them. The parts are sometimes joined by a tongue, after the manner of a whip-graft, but this is rarely necessary. Oranges and camelias were often propagated by inarching in the old practice, but this work is now much more easily done by the veneer-graft.

=Grafting-waxes.=--There are great numbers of recipes for waxes or mastics for protecting grafts and covering wounds upon trees. In this country the resin and beeswax waxes are most used, although some of the alcoholic waxes are popular in some regions. In Europe, many clay and pitch waxes are in common use. For most purposes, the wax No. 1 in the following list will be found one of the best, especially for applying by the hand. In making the resin and beeswax waxes, the materials are first broken up finely and melted together. When thoroughly melted, the liquid is poured into a pail or tub of cold water. It soon becomes hard enough to handle, and it is then pulled and worked over until it becomes tough or "gets a grain," at which stage it becomes the color of very light-colored manilla paper. When wax is applied by hand, the hands must be well greased. Hard tallow is the best material for this purpose. In top-grafting large trees it is well to carry a supply of tallow when waxing by smearing the backs of the hands before entering the tree.

_1. Common Resin and Beeswax Waxes._

1. Resin, 4 parts by weight; beeswax, 2 parts; tallow, 1 part.

2. Resin, 4 lbs.; beeswax, 1 lb.; tallow, 1 lb.

3. Resin, 6 lbs.; beeswax, 2 lbs.; linseed oil, 1 pt.

4. Resin, 6 lbs.; beeswax, 1 lb.; linseed oil, 1 pt.; apply hot with a brush, one-eighth of an inch thick over all the joints.

5. Resin, 4 lbs.; beeswax, 1 lb.; and from half to a pint of raw linseed oil; melt all together gradually, and turn into water and pull. The linseed oil should be entirely free from cotton-seed oil. For use in warm weather.

6. Resin, 6 parts; beeswax, 1 part; tallow, 1 part. To be used warm, in the house.

7. Resin, 4 or 5 parts; beeswax, 1-1/2 to 2 parts; linseed oil, 1 to 1-1/2 parts. For out-door work.

_2. Alcoholic Waxes._

8. Lefort's Liquid Grafting Wax, or Alcoholic Plastic.--Best white resin, 1 lb.; beef tallow, 1 oz.; remove from the fire and add 8 ozs. of alcohol. Keep in closed bottles or cans.

9. Alcoholic Plastic with Beeswax.--Melt 6 parts white resin with 1 part beeswax; remove from stove and partially cool by stirring, then add gradually--with continued stirring--enough alcohol to make the mixture, when cool, of the consistency of porridge. In the temperature of the grafting-room it will remain sufficiently plastic to permit applying to the cut surfaces with the finger.

10. Alcoholic Plastic with Turpentine.--Best white resin, 1 lb.; beef tallow, 1 oz.; turpentine, 1 teaspoonful; add enough alcohol (13 to 15 fluid ozs. of 95 per cent. alcohol) to make the wax of the consistency of honey. Or, less alcohol may be added if the wax is to be used with the fingers.

_3. French and Pitch Waxes._

11. Common French.--Pitch, 1/2 lb.; beeswax, 1/2 lb.; cow-dung, 1 lb. Boil together, melt and apply with a brush.

12. Common French Bandage Wax.--Equal parts of beeswax, turpentine and resin. While warm spread on strips of coarse cotton or strong paper.

13. Grafting Clay.--1/3 cow-dung, free from straw, and 2/3 clay, or clayey loam, with a little hair, like that used in plaster, to prevent its cracking. Beat and temper it for two or three days until it is thoroughly incorporated. When used it should be of such a consistency as to be easily put on and shaped with the hands.

14. Resin, 2 lbs. 12 ozs.; Burgundy pitch, 1 lb. 11 ozs. At the same time, melt 9 ozs. of tallow; pour the latter into the former, while both are hot, and stir the mixture thoroughly. Then add 18 ozs. of red ochre, dropping it in gradually and stirring the mixture at the same time.

15. Black pitch, 28 parts; Burgundy pitch, 28 parts; beeswax, 16 parts; grease, 14 parts; yellow ochre, 14 parts.

16. Black pitch, 28 lbs.; Burgundy pitch, 28 lbs.; yellow wax, 16 lbs.; suet or tallow, 14 lbs.; sifted ashes, 14 lbs. When used, warm sufficiently to make it liquid, without being so hot as to injure the texture of the branches.

17. Melt together 1-1/4 lb. of clear resin and 3/4 lb. of white pitch. At the same time melt 1/4 lb. of tallow. Pour the melted tallow into the first mixture, and stir vigorously. Then before the stuff cools add, slowly stirring meantime, 1/2 lb. of Venetian red. This may be used warm or cold.

_4. Waxed String and Bandage._

18. Waxed String for Root-grafting.--Into a kettle of melted wax place balls of No. 18 knitting cotton. Turn the balls frequently, and in five minutes they will be thoroughly saturated, when they are dried and put away for future use. This material is strong enough, and at the same time breaks so easily as not to injure the hands. Any of the resin and beeswax waxes may be used. When the string is used, it should be warm enough to stick without tying.

19. Waxed Cloth.--Old calico or thin muslin is rolled on a stick and placed in melted wax. When saturated it is allowed to cool by being unrolled on a bench. It is then cut in strips to suit. Or the wax may be spread upon the cloth with a brush.

_5. Waxes for Wounds._

20. Any of the more adhesive grafting waxes are excellent for dressing wounds, although most of them cleave off after the first year. Stiff and ochreous paints are also good.

21. Coal-tar.--Apply a coating of coal-tar to the wound, which has first been pared and smoothed. If the wound contains a hole, plug it with seasoned wood.

22. Hoskins' Wax.--Boil pine tar slowly for three or four hours; add 1/2 lb. of beeswax to a quart of the tar. Have ready some dry and finely sifted clay, and when the mixture of tar and wax is partially cold, stir into the above named quantity about 12 ozs. of the clay; continue the stirring until the mixture is so stiff, and so nearly cool, that the clay will not settle. This is soft enough in mild weather to be easily applied with a knife or spatula.

23. Schæfell's Healing Paint.--Boil linseed oil (free from cotton-seed oil) one hour, with an oz. of litharge to each pt. of oil; then stir in sifted wood ashes until the paint is of the proper consistency. Pare the bark until smooth. Paint the wound over in dry weather, and if the wound is very large, cover with a gunny-sack.

24. Tar for Bleeding in Vines.--Add to tar about 3 or 4 times its weight of powdered slate or some similar substance. Apply with an old knife or flat stick.

25. Hot Iron for Bleeding in Vines.--Apply a hot iron to the bare surface until it is charred, and then rub into the charred surface a paste made of newly-burnt lime and grease.

26. Collodion for Bleeding in Vines.--It may be applied with a feather or small brush. In some extreme cases two or three coats will be needed, in which case allow the collodion to form a film before applying another coat. Pharmaceutical collodion is better than photographic.