Page:Willich, A. F. M. - The Domestic Encyclopædia (Vol. 2, 1802).djvu/259

Rh great progress in foreign languages, or to become intimate with any complicated art or science.

X. Economical Sciences, including all the Mechanical Arts and Manufactures; as well as Trade, Commerce, and Navigation; but principally Agriculture and Gardening; the Arts of rearing Cattle, cultivating Trees, and managing Bees; Hunting; Fishing; Cooking, &c.

XI. Physics; namely, Natural Philosophy, Chemistry, Mineralogy, &c.

XII. Miscellaneous Literature; for instance, Encyclopædias; scientific works on a variety of subjects; treatises on Freemasonry; Literary Quarrels; books with obscure titles; critical journals, monthly magazines, and newspapers.  : See.  : See.  ENGRAFTING, or, a term in gardening, which signifies the taking a shoot from one tree, and inserting it into another, so that they may closely unite, and form one trunk.

Grafting has been practised from the most remote antiquity; but its origin and invention are differently related by Naturalists. The great aim of this useful art is, to propagate any curious sorts of fruit-trees, to insure the growth of similar kinds, which cannot be effected by any other method: for, as all the good species of fruit have been accidentally obtained from seeds, many of these, when sown, will degenerate, and produce bad fruit. But, when shoots are taken from such trees as bear good fruit, they will never change their kind, whatever be their stock, or the tree on which they are grafted.

Mr. observes, that the stock grafted on, is only to be considered as a fund of vegetable matter, which is to be filtered through the cyon, digested, and brought to maturity, as the time of growth in the vessels of the cyon directs. A cyon, therefore, of one kind, grafted on a tree of another, may be rather said to take root in the tree it is grafted, than to unite with it: for it is obvious that the cyon preserves its natural purity, though it be fed and nourished by a mere crab.

The grafts or cyons with which this operation is effected, should be of the last summer's growth, from the outside branches; firm and well ripened; and selected from healthy trees. The graft is always the middle part of each shoot, cut to 5 or 6 inches in length, or so as to have 4 or 5 good eyes, or buds, but should be preserved at full length, till grafting time.

The proper tools and other materials used in grafting, are: 1. A strong knife for cutting off the heads of the stocks, previous to the insertion of the graft; also a small hand-saw, for occasional use, in cutting off the heads of large stocks; 2. A common grafting-knife, or strong sharp pen-knife, for cutting and shaping the grafts ready for insertion; also to slope and form the stocks for the reception of the cyons; 3. A flat grafting chisel, and small mallet for clefting large stocks, in cleft-grafting; 4. A quantity of new bass-strings for bandages, for securing the grafts, and promoting their speedy union with the stock; and 5. A quantity of clay, for applying closely round the grafts after their insertion and binding, to defend the parts from the influence of the sun, winds, and wet weather, or from being affected by cold. Rh