PROPAGATION. 79 



and other stocks for grafting and budding. These can 

 be potted up or grown in the open ready for his 

 requirements. 



The character of a seedling soon shows itself in 

 the leaves, and interest and expectations rise with the 

 development of each leaf and shoot. Soon we can 

 pronounce as to the species, and often the parentage, 

 and when the full bloom is unfolded our reward 

 becomes revealed. 



Seedling-inarching. — This simple method of test- 

 ing the worth of a seedling long before such could 

 possibly be determined if grown on in the ordinary 

 way is of the greatest value to the Rosarian. Few 

 amateurs know much about the growing of Roses from 

 seed, and those who do generally tire of the process, 

 owing to the length of time seedlings take to show 

 their worth and the numerous disappointments that 

 are experienced. 



The usual methods are to bud or graft from a 

 seedling as soon as it is possible, or to wait until it 

 blooms in the ordinary way. By budding or grafting 

 you can ascertain a year or two in advance the true 

 quality of your Rose, which is seldom revealed when 

 ^rown on its own roots for many years. 



The seedling-inardh system, however, will give 

 you sure proof of what your Rose is worth within a 

 few months after germination. 



As soon as the cotyledons are developed on your 

 seedlings prick them off into two-inch pots, taking 

 care to plant them close up to the side of the pot. 

 Water and shade in the usual way, and grow on for 

 three weeks, by which time each seedling should have 

 developed sufficiently to permit of the operation of 

 inarching. Knock the seedling selected carefully out 

 of its pot and place it, with its soil still round it, on a 

 piece of sacking cut from five to six inches square. 

 Add a little fres'h soil, and wrap and tie with rafSa, 

 making the whole into a little parcel, not unlike a 

 small pot of sacking, in which a rose is growing. 



