334 Report of the Horticulturist of the 



back of the tips with fresh earth. In the fall, after the covered 

 portion has rooted, it is cut away from the old plant and cared 

 for in the way described for other layers. 



Propagation from Cuttings. — Gooseberries are readily grown 

 from cuttings in England and that method is commonly prac- 

 ticed there, but, as has already been explained, the European 

 gooseberries are not easily grown from cuttings in this climate. 

 Varieties like Pale Red, Downing, etc., which have descended 

 wholly or in part from native American species, are sometimes 

 propagated from cuttings in this state and are commonly 

 grown by this method in some portions of the southern and 

 western states. The cuttings, which are about eight inches long, 

 are made from the new wood, that is to say, from the new 

 shoots of the past season. They should be made as soon as 

 the new growth is ripe and hard, which in this section is usu- 

 ally soon after the first of October. Some nurserymen make the 

 cuttings earlier, even when it is necessary to strip the leaves from 

 the canes to do so, because they find it more convenient to do the 

 work before the fall delivery season opens. It is thought that 

 the hard, well-ripened wood roots more readily and gives a larger 

 percentage of good plants than do cuttings which are made from 

 immature wood, but when the cuttings are made early in the 

 fall, and planted at once, if the season proves favorable, they 

 send out roots before winter and are ready to start growth as 

 soon as spring opens, which insures a long season for growth, 

 and so favors the production of stronger plants than can be 

 grown from spring set cuttings. 



When the cuttings are not to be planted before spring they are 

 tied in bunches with wire or willows, as twine may rot and break, 

 properly labeled and buried in well drained soil. They are set 

 in the pit tops downward, so as to keep the top buds dornn^int 

 till planting time, and are covered about six inches deep with 

 soil. Trenches are opened if necessary to lead surface water 

 away, so that it will not settle around the pit. By covering with 

 coarse manure or other mulch, while the ground is frozen, the 



