50 ON CONIFEROUS STOCKS. 



in the spacious park or arboretum, or witliin the more limited 

 precincts of the cottage or villa garden. What can be more 

 majestic or graceful than the splendid Conifers of the Himalayas, 

 their gigantic allies in North-West America and New Zealand ; 

 or what more lovely than the foliage and habit of many from 

 the Mexican mountains ? It is not, however, my intention on 

 this occasion to notice such as are cultivated for timber, but to 

 point out a few stocks which are used in nurseries for " work- 

 ing" the more rare and valuable varieties upon. It may be 

 asked why " work " them at all ? To this I reply, if the species 

 or variety is sufficiently hardy for the situation it occupies, and if 

 seed or seedlings can be plentifully procured, there is no need 

 for " working." This, however, is not always the case ; seed of 

 some of the most beautiful and splendid Conifers is only sparingly 

 and not often imported ; and hence the necessity of propagating 

 them by grafting ; but another reason is, that many Mexican and 

 other Conifers which are scarcely hardy in our climate, will, if 

 worked on a hardy free-growing stock, stand many more degrees 

 of cold than they would do on their own roots. I shall give an 

 instance of this hereafter. 



Now as regards a stock for Pinuses, in my opinion notliing 

 equals P. austriaca : it is hardy, robust in growth, transjjlants 

 Avell at almost any age or size, and succeeds in any situation ; 

 all the Pinuses take and grow freely on it. With this the Scotch 

 Fir (Pinus sylvestris) will not bear comparison ; when potted, the 

 latter becomes stunted, it will not transplant freely, and grafts 

 neither take nor grow well upon it. For such Pinuses as Bank- 

 siana and its congeners, the Scotch Fir may be found useful ; but 

 for the free growing, long-leaved varieties, it must give place to 

 the Austrian Pine, upon which they grow beautifully. When 

 turned out of pots, the mould shaken off, and the roots trained 

 properly out (as they should be), P. austriaca does not appear 

 to suffer from the treatment, but takes to the soil and grows 

 freely, while many sorts " worked '' on the Scotcli Fir would die. 

 Pinus Strobus (or Weymouth Pine) is sometimes employed as a 

 stock for P. monticola, Lambertiana, and their allies ; these 

 however will take as well, and grow infinitely better on P. 

 austriaca ; indeed they are valueless on P. Strobus, which is 

 liable to die off even under the best of circumstances : how tiien 

 can it be expected to make a lasting stock? Many sorts are 

 worked iijion it, but I have never yet seen one last long, or 

 make good plants ; they invariably perished. Pinus Pinaster 

 forms a good stock for P. Lemoniana, and such like varieties : 

 they take and grow freely on it. These are the kind of stocks 

 generally employed for Pinuses in nurseries. There may be 

 others, such as P. Mughus, &c., but they do not equal the 

 above. 



