Perhaps the simplest under stock source is sucker growth from any of the roses in your garden.
If one got away from you during the previous year so that it grew long and matured its wood, you could cut it into 8-inch pieces and root them as described for hardwood cuttings on page 92. The only difference is that you'll want to gouge out all eyes on the cuttings except for the top two; any eyes left below the point where you would insert the bud are potential sucker sources.
Since your budding will be on a small scale and for your own amusement, all you need is something that roots easily and well and that will accept the majority of buds you put on it. Among the old rambler types, `American Pillar', `Crimson Rambler', `Dorothy Perkins', and `Veilchenblau' have been successful. If you live in a mild-winter area, you might also try Rosa banksiae and `Climbing Cecile Brunner'.
Sometimes you can buy Multiflora plants for hedges or erosion-control plantings. These plants may be suitable for budding the summer after you plant them; just one, allowed to grow, will supply you with under stock cuttings for years to come.
Whatever you select to be your under stock, the process of budding onto it is much easier if the under stock is grown in a container. Then you can perform the operation at table height instead of at ground level.
Spring and summer are budding seasons; the earlier the growing season begins, the sooner you can bud. The under stock must be succulent enough so that its bark will peel back easily from the woody core of the stem.
You need two "tools" for budding: a very sharp knife and something to tie-in the bud when the operation is finished. You can buy special budding knives that assure you of a good, sharp edge. Some of these are made with flattened handles designed to lift the flaps of bark formed by the T cut (see drawing on page 93). Moistened raffia once was the standard tie for budding, but this has been replaced by rubber strips 5-8 inches long known as "budding rubber." Even simpler to use-because they require no tying-are plastic bud coverings. These are clear plastic patches which you wrap completely over the bud and clip together on the opposite side of the stem from the bud. Both plastic and rubber budding wraps are sold by horticultural supply houses. A good local nursery or your county agricultural office should be able to suggest a source for them.
Three to four weeks after budding, you should have evidence of your success or failure. Cut the wrapping and look at the bud you inserted: if it is plump and green, you have the beginnings of a new rose bush. If, instead, it is black and shriveled, don't despair; try another bud on the opposite side of the same under stock and a little lower than the original.