PLANT REPRODUCTION 171 



be forced in the same soil for several years. One 

 large grower estimates that it costs him ten 

 thousand dollars to replant his houses. If this 

 expense can be eliminated by carrying the same 

 plant over for two or three years, the financial 

 results certainly favor the use of grafted stock. 



(c) A larger production of uniform-sized blooms. 



(d) Larger, stronger plants for summer planting, con- 



sequently a larger number of blooms early in 

 the fall. In an excellent pamphlet written by 

 Alexander Montgomery, Jr., this topic is dis- 

 cussed. 



136. Importation and preparation of manetti stock. - 

 Manetti stock is generally received in this country in 

 December or January. After it has become dormant in 

 those countries where it is extensively grown, it is dug, 

 placed in bundles of about twenty-five, and the roots 

 wrapped in straw. In this condition, the stock is shipped 

 to the United States. As soon as it arrives, it is hurried 

 through the custom house by the importers 'and sent im- 

 mediately to the ranges. It is unpacked and " heeled in " 

 for a few weeks in a cool, moist cellar. This freshens the 

 tissue of both roots and stems, and they become plump 

 and firm. Fresh white rootlets soon appear on the dor- 

 mant roots. The stock is then ready for potting, two 

 and one-half inch pots being used. Stock plants are 

 planted very firmly in a moderately rich compost, and 

 placed in a temperature of about forty-five degrees. As 

 soon as root growth commences and the buds begin to 

 swell, they are ready for grafting (Fig. 20, upper). 



137. Construction of the grafting case. Unlike other 

 forms of grafting, no grafting wax is used to protect the 

 union of stock and cion. A warm, moist atmosphere is 



