IRISH GARDENING 



kept so for a sufficient length of time they grow 

 and knit themselves together into one tissue, 

 and so the organic union is brought about. 



The details of the process may now be given. 

 It is necessary to use a pocket-knife with a 

 special handle sloping off into a blunt, blade- 

 like end, helpful in raising the bark of the 

 scion by tearing rather than by cutting. 

 Strands of bast or raffia for binding on the bud 

 will also be required. Many gardeners, how- 

 ever, prefer narrow tape or even worsted to 

 bast, as the latter is apt to become loose. 

 Having then selected twigs of the variety 

 carrying the buds to be used 

 the operator is ready to start. 

 In order to secure buds not 

 too old or too young it is usual ^^ 



to take them from the mid-length -^ m 



of the twig. In the series of i^, Si 

 illustrations here given Fig. II. iJgjS g 

 represents one such stem. 



1. Select the shrub or tree 

 to be used as stock. 



2. Make first a longitudinal 

 and then a transverse incision 

 (like the letter T) in the bark 

 of the stock. 



3. Using the thin end of the 

 knife-handle gently raise the lips 

 of the cut as in Fig. III. 



4. Remove a bud from twig 

 of scion. It should resemble 

 Fig. IV. 



5. Insert its lower pointed 

 end into mouth of slit and push 

 gently down into position as 

 shown in Fig. V. ^MW 



6. Bind securely with bast 

 strand tight enough to keep 

 the two wounded surfaces close 

 together, but not so very tight 

 as to injure the bark (Fig. \T). 



In about ten days or so the buds should be 

 looked over, and if there is any undue tighten- 

 ing due to growth the ligatures should be 

 loosened. 



In cases where injury is feared from outside 

 moisture penetrating to wound, the incision in 

 bark of stock may be made in the form of an 

 inverted T and the bud pushed upwards 

 instead of downwards. The flaps will then 

 act as a protecting "roof," as shown in 

 Fig. VII. 



The Propagation of Ferns 

 from Spores. 



THE raising of ferns from spores is a fascinating 

 pursuit, the process being quite simple and suc- 

 cess assured so long as certain precautions are 

 taken to give the necessary requirements to the young 

 plants. Spores are much simpler things than seeds. 

 Seeds contain an embryo plant, spores do not— in fact, 

 they resemble grains of pollen more than seeds. When 

 the spores of ferns germinate they produce not a young 

 fern plant as we commonly know it, but a tiny, flat, 

 green structure like a liverwort. It is called a pro- 

 thallus. The prothallus bears sexual 

 reproductive organs on its under side, 

 and from the fertilised egg of the 

 female organ the young fern even- 

 tually makes its appearance 



The spores are contained in little 

 cases as small as the grains of fine 

 sand, arranged in lines or clusters on 

 llie under surface of the fronds. 

 The spores should be gathered when 

 ripe and either sown at once or put 

 up in dry paper and kept until spring. 

 Pans may be used for their propa- 

 gation. The soil used by nurser\- 

 men is made up of four parts old loam, 

 one part peat, one part leaf-mould, 

 and one part fine sand. The pans 

 are well crocked, as good drainage 

 is essential. The compost before 

 using is passed through a riddle and 

 ihoroughly watered with builing 

 water. This, too, is essential in 

 order to kill the spores of moss plants 

 that are the most troublesome weeds 

 in fern-raising. The pan is filled 

 with the sterilised soil up to within 

 half an inch of the rim. As the 

 spores are so small and thick, 

 sowing is to be avoided ; the soil 

 should be marked off in sections and 

 each section carefully " seeded."' 

 The spores are to be simply scattered 

 over the surface and not covered. 

 The pan is then to be covered with a sheet of glass, as 

 it is most essential to success to keep the air laden 

 with moisture over the germinating spores. Shading 

 is, of course, necessary, but diffused light is not to 

 be excluded, as the prothallus is a green structure, 

 and therefore requires light, even although it must 

 be subdued. When the young frond appears arising 

 from the prothallus the young fern may be pricked out 

 and potted off. Good subjects for beginners to start 

 upon are the Ribbon fern (Pteris Winsettii, for example). 

 Maidenhair (Adiantum elegans and A. cuneatum) and 

 Aspleniums. 



