236 Plums and Plum Culture 



This summary shows eleven kinds of stocks for 

 eleven different groups of plums. A simple mathe- 

 matical calculation shows us that there are 121 differ- 

 ent combinations possible with these series. If we 

 then take into consideration the added fact that, in 

 each one of these cases, the nurseryman has a choice of 

 two principal methods of propagation, budding or 

 grafting, we have doubled the complications, and 

 have offered him 242 different combinations from 

 which to choose. This is rather too liberal for an ordi- 

 nary nurseryman's peace of mind. 



Growing from seed. New varieties of plums are 

 grown from seed. So are many of the stocks. The 

 seed should be saved as soon as the fruit is ripe, and 

 should preferably never be allowed to dry out. The 

 best treatment is to stratify the seed as soon as gath- 

 ered, or to give some treatment which amounts to the 

 same thing. The simplest way of stratifying plum pits 

 is as follows : Take any suitable box ; one eighteen 

 inches wide, two feet long, six inches deep, is about 

 right. Put a layer of clean, friable soil in the bottom, 

 about an inch deep. Strew a layer of plum pits 

 on this, just about covering the soil with the pits. 

 Then put in another layer of soil, just well covering 

 the pits. Keep on putting in alternate layers of pits 

 and soil till the box is full. Then bury the box, not 

 deeply, in some \vell-drained place, where the mice will 

 not get at it during the winter and where the pits will 

 freeze. Freezing is not absolutely necessary, but it is 

 advantageous. It softens and cracks the stones. I 

 bury my choicer pits in large flower pots or in pottery- 

 ware seed pans. 



In the spring the seeds are sifted out of the soil 

 and planted, or the soil and all may be put into the 

 seed drills. It is better to sift out the seeds. If the 

 stones are of particular value, as when one is handling 



