Grafting and cuttings of E. deglupta

The 150 best trees had a second yellow band applied after they were assessed to indicate that they were then designated as part of the “breeding population”. A metal plate with the candidate number (for example C81) painted on it was nailed to a creosote treated sawn timber stake about 1.5 m tall that was driven into the ground near the base of the tree.

Grafting and cuttings of E. deglupta

Top cleft and patch grafts were made at intervals when breaks from other work permitted. New techniques tried were cuttings made from the shoots that had developed from top cleft grafts, the scions of which had been taken from the upper crown of candidate trees by climbers. The aim was to see if grafting had led to any rejuvenation of the original adult material. Cuttings were taken also from trees felled in plots for the purpose of constructing a volume table. This kind of experimentation was recorded as occurring on 29 April, 1, 9, 10, 14, 29, and 30 May. On 14 May the cuttings and grafting scions were collected from Candidate trees 67, 68, 70, 72, 73, 74, 75 and 76 in Compartment 14 Fryar LA using sectional aluminium ladders and climbing. Cuttings were placed under mist and grafts carried out on the same day. For these the first new shoot buds appeared on both the cuttings and grafts on 22 May, that is, after only about one week.

The cuttings plantation of E. deglupta at Vudal was inspected at age 4 months.

Right: Cutting of E. deglupta four months after planting, photographed in early May 1968 in the cuttings plantation in Compartment 2 Vudal.

Left: Card used in the field to improve the consistency of subjective assessment and scoring of straightness and fluting of the bole of E. deglupta. Below: Buttresses were measured using a 5-foot (about 1.5 m) long graduated height stick.

Photographs of an example of the two-page assessment sheet that was used in the field for characterizing trees of E. deglupta.