THE OLIVE TREI ] 103 



until the new roots are fcJr J mfedv"and-'t6' J - prevent any 

 movement by the wind. This operation is best performed 

 from December 10 February, and with due care there 

 should be very few failures. It is important not to 

 allow the suckers to dry too much by exposure to 

 air before planting, and if planting cannot be done 

 at once it is advisable to cover well their bases or 

 truncheons with moist earth until they can be transferred 

 to their destined place in the nursery or in the grove. 

 In the first year they should be watered regularly, 

 and usually they make slow growth in the first year 

 or two, but after two years they become established 

 and make rapid progress. 



Propagation by truncheons or pieces of the base 

 of the trunk, is another method in favour with gardeners 

 anxious to increase rapidly their stock of young trees 

 when few suckers are available, or when it is desired 

 to utilize the bases of trunks of old olive trees on being 

 cut down or removed. Truncheons may be as large 

 as half an orange, or up to 30 c. m. in diameter and 

 should have one or more protuberances or latent buds 

 from which suckers are likely to sprout. They are 

 partly sawn off or cut out with a pickaxe or chisel. 

 A bed is prepared in a cool situation, and the truncheons 

 are planted 50 c. m. apart, with the protuberance 

 directed upwards and are covered by 5 to 10 c. m. 

 of soil mixed with well-consumed manure and leaf- 

 mould, taking care that no manure is in touch with 

 the fresh wound on the undersurface. The bed is kept 

 moderately moist throughout the summer, well clear of 

 weeds, and the surface is occasionally scratched with 

 a rake to keep the soil soft and friable until the suckers 

 are thrown up. This operation is best done from 

 December to March, and the truncheons may 'be 

 planted directly at their final destination in the grove, 

 but in this case they should be planted about 30 c. m. 

 deep, covering them to a depth of 5 to 10 c. m. by 



