US1608971A

US1608971A - Method of grafting

Info

Publication number: US1608971A
Application number: US743942A
Authority: US
Inventors: Luther E Alexander
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1924-10-16
Filing date: 1924-10-16
Publication date: 1926-11-30
Anticipated expiration: 1943-11-30

Description

Nov. 30 1926.

L. E. ALEXANDER METHOD oF GRAFTING Filed Oct. 16. 1924 Luc fr u/er Eff/erdader Mfr/(Muy Patented Nov. 3Q, i926.

Urrea stares 'l` Q FFICE.

Application filed Gctober 16, '3.924.

My invention relates to the art of ,grafting trees and shrubs, and especially to the art of grafting a bud or scion on the stock of those trees .or shrubs in which the successful knitting of the scion to the stock is accomplished with great difficulty. An example of a tree of this type is a walnut tree to which the grafting of a bud has been considered exceedingly difiicult, practically impossible, except under the most favorable conditions.

The object of my invention thus is to provide a .method of grafting` by which the flow of the sap in the stock will be `directed or constrained so as to vow thru the scion in such sufficient amount as to ensure the proper nourishment and the growth of the scion.

l have discovered that the difficulty in successful grafting lies in the inefficiency of the old method of in'ipelling` the flow of the sap through the scion in sufficient quantity to nourish the latter properly. ln -other words, under the old method, the sap tended to flow by, or around, instead of through the scion.

l have further discovered that a suflicient low of the sap may befensured by impeding the flow of the sap aroundv the scion thereby to compel a substantial portion of the sap to flow thru the scion. Such result is produced by making a circumferential gap in the bark between the upper and lower portion of the stock. Such removal of the bark may be made in the form of a girdle, that is extended completely around; or by making' only a partial circumferential removal of the bark and cutting' the latter at the rgap so as to extend in the form of a tongue or bridge across the gap. The graft is then completed by slitting the bark of the stock adjacent said incision or gap, lifting' the bark portions adjacent said slit, and inserting7 the shieldlike scion under said lifted portions, but care must be taken to bring the end of the scion into contact with a section of the bark of the stock on the other side of said gap.

l have hereinafter described several modes of attaining the object of my invention in practice and have illustrated the same in the accompanying drawings, in Which:

Fig. l shows a portion of a stock to which a scion has been attached by following one mode of carrying my invention into practice;

Fig. 2 shows the shield used in the practice of my invention as illustrated by Fig. l,

Seri-a1 No. "43,942,

the under face or side of the shield being-V turned towards the reader;

liig'. 3 illustrates another mode of carrying my invention into practice; as here shown instead of making' a complete girdle orf the stock at the place where the seien is to be attached. as done when following the method illustrated by Fig. lea tongue is left on the bark of the stock on one side of the girdle or to span the gap; vFig. fishows a longitudinal section throng-h the` stock and the in'erted bud, taken substantially on the line-4 4 of Fig. 3;

Fig. 5 illustrates another modircation ofv my invention in which a relatively small portion of the harkis left at each side of said shield and across said girdle;- and Fig. 6 shows a fragmentary transverse section taken through the stock and shield substantially along the line 6&6 of Fig'. 5.

rl`he method of budding generally followed is known as shield budding, and it is to this type of budding,` that my invention relates.

firs well known the so-called shield consists of an eye or bud a; bearing a portion of bark o which carries a portion of the sapwood or alburnurn c. l have noted that the proportion ofbuds which are successfully grafted by shield 'budding as heretofore practiced even under the most favorable conditions is relatively small, as compared with the buds that do not attach themselves to the stock, even though. care is 'taken in the grafting operation. The reason of the failure is that the scion is i-nsufliciently nourished.

Describing first the mode of practicing my invention as illustrated by Fig. lz-A circumferential section of the bark of the stock l is removed as at g to produce a girdle or gap in the bark at the point where the Scion is to be grafted. A longitudinal incision, or slit k is then made in the bark of the stock on both sides of said gap, the slitted portions e and e of the bark are lifted, the shield is placed under these bark portions, and the graft is then secured in place by a wrapping of rafiia or grafting` cord. The shield should be so arranged that the bud o is close to one side of the girdle or gap. The sap which flows through the stock will thus be compelled to pass through the shield from one side to the other of the gap or girdle g. l have discovered that this method of Sil grafting causes any flow of sap in the stock to pass through the shield; and hence this method may be practiced at any time of the year when sap is running.

Another mode of practicing my invention is illustrated by Fig. 8. In this case that portion of the bark of the stock, where the gap is to be made is cut in the form of a tongue e2, which extends across the gap g and is brought into contact with the upper edge of the shield b carrying the bud a. The incision 7L is the same as the incision 71, shown in Fig. l. Then the slitted portions of the bark adjacent the slit are folded over the shield. If the sap flow in the tree is limited, or the nature of the tree causes it to knit slowly, and it is feared that, for that reason, the wound will heal with diiiiculty, the tongue e2 should be made of such width that the lateral portions of its end can be placed in abutment with the bark portions e3, e3 at each side of the shield. The portions of the tongue c2 abutting with the bark portions c3, e3 should not be made of such width, however, as to tend to divert the sap entirely around the bud, but merely to permit a small portion of the sap to pass through said abutment, so as not to cut. off the direct flow of the sap through the stock entirely. The bud a in the method illustrated by Fig. 3 should also be located close to the gap g so as to assure that the bud will be nourished by an ample flow of sap.

In Figs. 5 and 6 I illustrate a still further modification of my invention in which the incision h2 is made so that the portion c4 of the bark on the stock can be lifted up at one side and a continuation LS of said incision 71,2 is made below the girdle g2 out of alinement therewith so that the lifted bark portions c5 at both sides of said incision 71.3 will cover said shield at both sides of the bud. Said girdle g2 is not made completely about the stock (Z2 in this case but a small portion of the bark e is left at each side of the shield (see Fig. 6) so that the bark portion Z22 of the shield is kept from drying out. Said stock portions e6 also serve the same purpose as the overlapped portions of the portion e2 in Fig. 3, that is, to prevent the entire sap flow thru the 4stock from being cut off, said portions permitting a very limited' sap flow to pass at each side of the shield carrying the bud. But said stock portions c must not be of such width as to tend to divert all of the sap away from the shield for the bud. |The bud a2 of the Scion should be located close to the gap g2.

Although my invention is shown only as a modification of shield grafting, it is obvious that it is equally adaptable for use with buds inserted into the stock by flute or ring grafting.

I claim:

l. The method of grafting a scion on a growing stock consisting in removing a circumferential section of the bark of the stock so as to provide a gap in the bark adjacent the point where the scion is to be grafted, making a longitudinal slit in said bark adj acent said gap, lifting the bark portions adjacent. the said slit, inserting a shield-like seion under said lifted portions, bringing the seien into Contact with a `section of the bark of the stock on the other side of said gap and securing the graft in place.

2. The method of grafting a scion on a growing stock, consisting in removing a circumferential section of the bark of the stock so as to provide a gap in the bark adjacent the point where the vscion is to be grafted but leaving on one side of the gap a tongue of the bark to span said gap, making a longitudinal slit in said bark adjacent and on the other side of said gap in alinement with said tongue, lifting the bark portions adjacent the said slit, inserting a shield-like scion under said lifted portions, bringing the scion into Contact with the said tongue of the bark of the stock and securing the grafted scion in place.

LUTHER E. ALEXANDER.