PROPAGATION. 87 



chance seedling of the Soft Maple, the Weeping Ameri- 

 can Elm, Cut-leaf Birch, Weeping Mountain Ash, Pyram- 

 idal Arborvitse, and a host of other kinds that are 

 propagated by bud-division by nurserymen. The person 

 who is on the lookout for these or other variations will 

 have no trouble in finding many that may perhaps be 

 worth naming and propagating. 



Gathering Seeds. All kinds of seeds should be gath- 

 ered when ripe. In some cases it is best to pick them from 

 the trees even before they are quite ripe, after which they 

 will ripen if kept dry. Unripe seeds do not keep as well 

 as perfectly ripe seeds. Most kinds of tree seeds are 

 most cheaply gathered from the ground. In some cases 

 this method can be greatly facilitated by cleaning up 

 the land under the trees so that it will be smooth and 

 even. Seeds of some species 'can often be swept up at 

 little expense from under trees growing along the high- 

 way. 



Germination of Seeds. There are many conditions 

 which affect the germination of seeds: 



(1) Seeds which are thoroughly ripened before they 

 are gathered produce the best plants. Very immature 

 seeds will very often grow, but the tendency with them 

 is to produce weak plants. (2) Freshly gathered seeds, 

 as a rule, are preferable to old seeds for sowing, and seeds 

 that have never been allowed to become very dry are more 

 likely to grow than those which have been severely dried. 

 This is especially true of most of the kinds of seeds that 

 ripen in early summer, the most of which lose their vitality 

 very quickly when stored. (3) Some seeds, such as 

 those of the Plum, Cherry, and Black Walnut, require 

 severe freezing when moist in order to germinate. (4) 

 Seeds that are covered with water will not generally grow. 

 This is true at least of our Northern tree seeds. (5) The 

 seeds of some trees germinate at a temperature near 



