DECEMBER: FOURTH WEEK 339 



Starting the Cuttings 



The cuttings may be rooted in any of several ways. A 

 room or place where a fairly even temperature may be main- 

 tained is necessary. Plants that start in a moderate tem- 

 perature are more likely to be healthy and vigorous than 

 those grown in a very warm place. The temperature should 

 if possible be kept up to forty or forty-five degrees, though 

 frequently cuttings will take root when the temperature 

 drops occasionally to very near freezing during the process. 



The material in which to keep the cuttings until the new 

 roots form may be sand, sand and water, or pure water. 

 The former is generally used, though the second, which is 

 known as the saucer system, may sometimes be used to 

 advantage when only one or two dozen cuttings are to be 

 made. If sand is to be used procure an ordinary flat or 

 shallow box, two or three inches deep. If the bottom is 

 very tight, bore half a dozen holes in it. In this place a 

 layer of coarse chip dirt or excelsior from the woodshed and 

 then put in two inches of clean, medium coarse sand, such 

 as masons use. Dirty sand may be cleansed in a few minutes 

 by placing it in a pail and shoving a piece of hose through 

 to the bottom, letting the water carry the impurities off 

 from the top. After thoroughly saturating the sand, let it 

 drain to remove all surplus water, and then place the cut- 

 tings to about half their depth in it, seeing that the sand is 

 packed firmly and closely about them. Do not leave them 

 in a wabbly state. 



By the second, or saucer, method, the sand is placed in a 

 shallow glazed bowl or dish and kept wet enough so that 

 water stands upon the surface all the time. The dish is 

 placed in a warm window in the full sunlight, and the sand 

 is kept constantly saturated, which will require the addition 

 of a small amount of water each day. If the sand once dries 

 out the cuttings are lost. 



Some plants, such as the oleander, that have compar- 

 atively hard wood and are slow in rooting, may be made 

 into long cuttings and stuck into a bottle of water into which 



