NATURAL PROPAGATION 



261 



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Underground rootlike stems or rhizomes are charac- 

 teristic of some plants. As they run under the ground, 

 they give off buds which form new plants. 



well as many grasses and 

 weeds, are usually propa- 

 gated in this way. Seeds 

 of strawberries are so 

 very difficult to cultivate 

 that horticulturists de- 

 pend entirely upon the 

 runners for propagation. 

 Rhizome. A common 

 form of subterranean 

 stem is the rhizome or 

 rootstock. It is a hori- 

 zontal stem running 

 under the ground. As it grows beneath the soil, it sends off roots 

 from its under surface, and leaf-bearing branches from its upper 

 surface. The rhizome is usually somewhat thickened with food. 

 Growth takes place year after year from the same rootstock which 



bears the annual scars of 

 the ground stems. In the 

 common ferns, the so-called 

 fronds are simply large 

 leaves developed directly 

 from the rhizome. Blood- 

 root, Solomon' s-seal, wake- 

 robin, lily of the valley, 

 and many other spring 

 flowers are propagated from 

 rootstocks. 



Tubers. The potato 

 plants have slender, under- 

 ground stems. Certain 



Potatoes can be raised from seeds. The usual ' . , 



method of propagating potatoes, however, is to use a regions OI these Stems en- 

 part of the tuber with an eye. The eye is a bud , , rp, 

 from which the stems and roots grow. large to torm tubers. I he 



