136 THE FIG: ITS HISTORY, CULTURE, AND CURING. 
different color from afresh one, the former being grayish and dull, 
the latter being blackish or dark and brilliant, reflecting the sun or 
light. 
BEST TIME FOR MAKING CUTTINGS. 
The fig tree is never entirely dormant, as there is always some sap 
moving. Even in winter, when all the leaves have fallen, a cut in the 
wood will cause the sap toexude. But the fig has periods of greater 
or lesser activity, the latter beginning in the fall of the year after 
the leaves have fallen. This period should be chosen for propagat- 
ing the fig. The flow of sap at that time does not interfere with 
the rooting of the cuttings, as it is the downward flow of the sap which 
produces the callus from which the roots develop. Later, when the 
leaves have started, the fig roots with more difficulty. The proper 
time for cuttings is therefore in November and December, and if the 
ground is warm and sandy, the sooner they are planted the better. If 
the ground is very cool and clayey, the making of cuttings, or at least 
their planting, should be postponed until February or March, although 
the earliest planted cuttings always prove the best, provided the con- 
ditions have been proper. Cuttings which are to be sent away should 
always be cut early, as they stand long shipments better than cuttings 
which have been made late. The latter contain much more sap, and 
on this account are less dormant. For planting out of doors, the ear- 
lier the cuttings are made after the frost has caused the leaves to fall 
the better. 
HOW TO MAKE CUTTINGS, 
If a large fig plantation is to be started it is most practical to make 
the different sizes of cuttings at the same time and to assort them 
afterwards. If cuttings are required year after year, it is best to 
have certain trees set apart for that purpose, as when fruiting trees 
are cut back they will cease to bear properly for one or more years, 
or they will bear inferior fruit. The branches from which the eut- 
tings are to be made should be cut back at once to the main stem of 
the tree. After being thrown to the ground the large limbs should 
be sawed or cut off immediately and assorted as to size. After being 
conveyed to a cool place they should be protected from the sun and 
wind. This may be done either by heeling the cuttings in the ground 
if they are apt to remain there for some length of time—a week or 
ten days—before being cut up. But if they are to be worked up at 
once they may be merely covered with straw, wet sacks, or blankets. 
If covered at all they must be covered well; and not more than one- 
tenth part of their whole length should in any case be exposed to the 
sun or winds. This refers also to the heeling in, when nine-tenths of 
the cuttings should be below the soil. 
The large cuttings should be made up first. The large limbs 
should be sawed off square across and cut, as straight as possible, in 
