The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1881-04-25
q The Grating Season.

The annual grating season is near at
hand and few hints upon the subject are
in order. All trees that bear sour, grabbed
fruit, should at once lose their lead and be
grated with some good sort. The sale OF
cider is to certain extent, interdicted by
law and even if it were not, the price gener-
ally rules so low that tree that produces
fruit fit only for cider, will not pay for the
use of the land it stands upon. On the 9th
er hand, it is rarely the case that good fruit
does not pay well for the use of the land
and all the time bestowed upon it. In an
article sometime last fall, we advised far
mers who are raising a large quantity Of
early fall fruit, to gradually diminish the
quantity by grating with the most approved
winter sorts, and we should repeat this ad-
vice with emphasis. Last fall early fruit
could hardly be given away, while good
winter sorts have borne good price.
The oper alton of grating in its details is
very simple, yet it requires care, judgment
and very good eye. Success in grating
depends upon exactly matching the banks.
Scions should ordinarily be cut in February,
but if they are 10 be inserted at ouce, they
may be cut at any time during the grating
season, or until the vegetation is too far ad-
vanced. A good grating wax may be made
of two parts of resin, and one of bees-wax
and one of tallow, melted together and made
into rolls by turning the melted mass into
water working it with the hands, as shoe
makers do the wax used in their business !;
or it may be put on with brush, in it's
melted state, as soon as the scion is set. For
nursery grating or on small branches, it
will be found convenient to have the wax
spread on strips of cotton cloth which can
be applied with great ease. We know of
many who use in lieu of wax. a mortar
made of clay and fine sand or yellow earth,
and it works well and where the Ingredients
are handy,it is very cheap.
Still another kind of wax or cement is
made of four parts of resin, two of bees-wax,
a sufficient quantity of fine whiting to give
consistency, and small quantity of linseed
oil, just enough to cause it to work easily by
the heat of the hand. This should be pl ced
around the graft in sufficient quantity to
support it and keep out the wet. There are
various ways of grating, but it is generally
performed by splitting the stock with a
sharp knife or a wedge-shaped instrument,
giving wedge-like form to the lower end of
the scion and carefully inserting this in the
cleft, in such way that the bark of the
stock and of the scion shall come in con-
tact. Wax mortar or cement is then applied
to exclude the air and water, and keep the
If the tree to be grated is young, great care
is needed to form an evenly balanced, we'll
shaped top. Toe much should not be cut
away at the time of grating, but after the
scious have years growth, some of the
remaining limbs may be cut off of the
topbut not too much or the tree will not
have sufficient foliage to keep it in
thrifty condition, or too little, or the CRAFTS
will be shaded and their growth impeded.
The golden mean should be observed in this
business, as in everything else.
Whara tba Ior ind ;e
quired to know just what limbs to graft and
what to cut away and how many scions it is
best to set. Some skill is necessary in man
ipulating the scion, adjusting it in such
manner that the bark of the stock and scion
may be exactly in juxtaposition, that the as
cending sap OF the tree may enter the scion
and start it into life.
There is an almost endless variety of win
ter apples and the number is increasing year
by year, but the number of sorts which
farmer needs to raise for profit is not so very
great. For shipping the Baldwin at the
present time is in the front rank, while the
Fameuse and yellow Bellfower stand among
the best in the home market. Several other
varieties which we need not name are popu-
lar in the market, while the Roxbury Russell
as late keeper beats all others and rarely
fails of bringing good price. The farmer
who raises apples for the market, if he
would find ready sales and good profits, must
produce those varieties VIII CHI are popular
demand, and only those. There are many
varieties of apples which are fairly good, but
which will hardly sell at any price because
there is no popular demand for them
Maine Farmer