Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1857-07-16
Budding Fruit Trees.

erS Vi Bdrueu plotS, WHou living III tuo VI
entity of well regulated thrifty nurseries,
will find it less troublesome and quite as
economical to purchase trees in suitable
place for planting. Others remote from such
nurseries, and especially those planting
largely, will find it convenient both in point
of economy and for greater confidence in va
rieties worked under their own eye, to raise
their trees and do their own budding
Budding is preferable to grating in sew
eral respects The operation can be per-
formed on younger trees, and with more cer-
tainty of success than grating, besides re-
quiring much less time, and furthermore,
failures in budding may be grated the fol-
lowing Spring.
If one year old seedlings were set innursery
rows in the Spring they will mostly be in prop
err condition for budding during this and the
following months (July and August. The
particular period can best be ascertoined by
trial. If the bark separates readily from
the wood the stock is in the right state to re-
ceive the bud. Provide budiing knife,
which is very convenient, though we have
budded hundreds OF trees with "iack knife"
in olden times. Get some good bass mating
(inside bark from Eastwood trees) for
strings. Cut off shoots Of IKE present years
growth from those trees you wish to propa-
gate. Remove the leaves growing out from
the buds to be taken, but leave half an inch
or more of the stem of the leaf to handle
the bud by when inserting it. Keep the
shoots bearing the buds in pail while using,
with the butt ends immersed in water. The
bass should be cut into strings of about ten
or twelve inches in length, and bundle of
them moistened and wrapped in wet cloth
to keep them damp and pliable.
You are now ready to insert the buds. Sc
lect a smooth space on the stock near the
ground to receive them. Ounce and Peach
stocks require budding 50 low that it is bet
ter to first draw away the earth from the
trunks with hoe, that the buds may be in
, serted as near the roots, as possible. The
stocks i'll such cases will need rabbng off
with wooden rag to prevent the airt, from
dulIing the knife. The knife HIRE intro.
duced is the old English budding knife, upon
one end Of which is an ivory Or bone append
age called the hat1. This is used to sepa-
rate the bark from the wood. Our most ex-
pert builders use a similar blade of the best
material in common handle sepa ratng the
bark with the rounded edge of the blade.
Having selected favorable spot near the
root make a cross cut and a downward slit
from this for an inch Or little more in
length, in both cases cutting entirely through
the bark. Instead of Withdrawing the blade
after this last cut, incline the handle little
to the right, and working the blade little
to part the bark from the wood, pass it up
ward in the same slit With little prac-
tice, the left hand lip can in this way be
readily parted from the wood. Next select
a stick Of good, we'll developed buds and
proceed to remove one, by taking the shoot
in the left hand with the butt end from you,
and inserting the knife one half inch beyond
the bud, make a smooth cut at the blade
coming out half to three fourths of an inch
upon the other side of the bud. The bud
piece should be at least an inch and half
in length. The English practice is to remove
the wood taken out with the bud, but our
own nurserymen have of late discarded it,
believing the wood Of service to prevent the
bud from drying up under our hot Summer
sun. With the rounded edge of the knife,
separate the other lip at the cross cut and
slip the bud down cutting off any of the bark
which would extend above the cross cut, so
that it will fit neatly in its place. Con6ne
the bud firmly by passing strip of mating
entirely around it, except the crown.
Some use for binding narrow strips Of
worn muslin, coated with grating wax, made
more soft and sticky by adding tallow, lard
Or oil. Old muslin or cotton will burst by
the growth of the tree, and save loosening
by hand. The bandages are prepared by
plying the wax while hot, with painters
, brush. Tear or cut the cloth into strips half
an inch in width and ten to twelve inches
in length cutting so that the strong
est threads of the cloth shall run across the
[ strips and thus burst readily by the growth
, of the tree. In about two weeks inspect the
trees and rebud any that are much shriveled
. If they appear fresh and plump, they are do.
|, ing well, and the mating may require loos
/ ening or even removing if there is rapid
t growth, and it has become we'll established.
0 In the following Spring as soon as the
buds start, go over the whole and head dowr
n all the stocks which have taken, leaving q
t stub some three inches in length to which
!, the new shoot should be tied after growing d
s few inches, that it may assume a perfectly
;, upright form. 1t is also less liable to b.
e broken out by high Winds About midsum
i mer, or after the new shoot has attained 8
foot or more of growth, the remainder of tn.
f old stock obove the bud should be removed
h with sharp pruning knife using great eau
: ton not to injure the new shoot. The rapid
r growth of wood and bark will soon heal THU
e wound, and in few years the tree will b.
: entirely straight and sound at this point.