The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1884-03-01
Grating Wax.

We wish it could be said with truth
that every farmer and owner of garden
knew how to graft all the different
kinds of fruit and ornamental trees, or
even the most common species in cult
walton. But we regret to say that only
a very small proportion of those who
cultivate trees know anything about the
different methods employed in their
propagation; still, the number of per-
sons who do their own grating and
budding of fruit and ornamental trees
Is increasing every year, and will prob
ably continue to do so until these pro-
cesses will no longer be considered the
special property of nurserymen or pro-
fessional grafters. Occasionally a
farmer, after watching some itinerant
CRATER working in his orchard, will be-
come satisfied that he can peform the
manual part of the operation as well as
the man he is employing; but if he
seeks information regarding the com
position of the wax used in covering the
wound made in the tree operated upon,
he is very likely to be informed that it
is trade secret, which will be divulged
for a certain sum, and this usually puts
an end to further investigation in that
direction. We do not suppose, how
ever, that those professional grafters
who 90 about the country seeking en-
ployment, know anything about their
business that has not been published a
thousand times; but those who do not
read agricultural and horticultural
journals and books are not aware of the
fact, and therefore inclined to think
that there may be some professional
secrets not usually disclosed to the pub
lie, and that one of these is the compo-
sition of the various kinds of grating
wax or other unctuous compounds.
The primitive composition used for
covering wounds and cuts made in
grating was clay and COW manure.
Any good kind of clay was taken, and
two parts of this was mixed with one
part of COW manure, all well beaten to-
gether in order to make it as tough as
possible. Sometimes little finely
chopped grass was added to give it
toughness. This composition was in
common use more than 1000 years
ago, and is still used by gardeners in
grating certain kinds of plants that
have a soft sponge-like bark that might
be injured by compositions containing
oil or grease.
The composition of grating wax is
almost as variable as the ideas of the
men who use it, and there are scores of
reel pes for making it. One of the old
est, and, we think, one of the best for
outdoor use, is composed of four parts
of common rOsin, two parts of beeswaX
and about one and half parts of tallow;
all are melted together over moderate
fire and well stirred before the mixture
cools. If it is to be used in very cool
weather add little more tallow, or if
in warm little less. In Europe, Bur-
gundy pitch is more generally used in
making grating wax than in this
country. Some of the French nursery
men recommend the following: Melt to-
gether two pounds twelve ounces of
rosin and one pound and eleven ounces
of Burgundy pitch. At the same time
melt nine ounces of tallow, pour the
latter into the former while both are
hot and stir the mixture thoroughly.
Then add eighteen ounces of red ochre,
dropping it in gradually and stirring
the mixture at the same time. After the
composition has cooled sufficiently
work it we'll with the hands. For out
door work in cool weather this wax is
rather hard, but if carried in vessel
where it can be occasionally warmed
it is readily applied and is quite
durable.
All the above kinds of wax may be
spread upon cloth or tough paper with
a brush when warm, and after it has
cooled the paper or cloth may be cut
up into narrow strips of any convenien.
size. In what is called splice or whip
grating, these strips of waXed cloth
are very convenient for wrapping about
the parts united. A French mastic
known as "Lefort's Liquid Grating
Wax" is made by melting one pound of
common rosin over a gentle fire and
adding one ounce of beef tallow, the
latter to be well stirred in. Take it
from the fire, let it cool down little
and then mix in eight ounces of alcohol.
The alcohol will cool down the mixture
so rapidly that it may be necessary to
put it on the fire again. The utmost
care must be exercised to prevent the
alcohol taking fire This mastic is
highly recommended by the nursery
men of France, and it has been used to
some extent in this country for several
years. 1t is imported in tin boxes and
usually kept on sale at seed stores,
We might give many other recipes
for making grating wax and mastics,
but believe that the above are the best,
and that the one made simply of rosin,
beeswaX and tallow is as good as any
ever invented. Some nurserymen of
late years have substituted linseed oil
for tallow, and while it may answer for
some kinds of trees, we are inclined to
think tits injurious to those with very
thin bark. We have known several
instances where losses have occurred
that were attributed to the use of oil in
making the wax used in grating. N
Y. San.
A