CLASSES OF CUTTINGS 125 



mere presence of terminal buds. Therefore, when there 

 is a good supply of plant material, propagators usually 

 gather only the tips of the shoots (Fig. Ill) for making 

 green wood cuttings. Especially is this the case with 

 bedding plants that have been growing in the open air. 

 Such plants are either transplanted to the greenhouse or 

 cut close to the ground and taken to the work room, 

 where terminal growths are made into cuttings and the 

 balance thrown away. During the winter stock plants 

 (145), as also the first rooted cutting plants made from 

 them, have their terminals removed to make new shoots. 

 Such plants often produce growths of 3 to 10 inches, 

 depending largely on species and variety. When such 

 growths are cut and propagated by midwinter they produce 

 bedding plants for outdoor setting by spring. 



185. Making green wood cuttings. Green wood cut- 

 tings are usually two to four inches long and have at 

 least one leaf. When several leaves are allowed to remain 

 they are cut more or less to reduce transpiration of 

 water. Usually the cuts are made just below the nodes, 

 but with many subjects this is unnecessary, as soft wood 

 cuttings will often strike root at any point covered with 

 soil, though most roots come near the base of the cut- 

 tings whether or not cut near a node. When cuttings 

 are very short, they are often tied to toothpicks (Fig. 

 92) so they will "stay put" in the propagating bed. 



186. Removal of leaves from green wood cuttings, as 

 also from transplanted plants, is not essential to success, 

 but is an aid, since it checks transpiration of water and, 

 therefore, the danger of "flagging" or wilting. Entire 

 stripping of leaves as compared with leaf-surface reduc- 

 tion should be avoided, as the assistance of some leaf sur- 

 face is helpful to root formation, provided proper mois- 

 ture control is practiced. Various subjects do best under 

 various treatments ; for example, coleus should be severely 

 stripped, geranium rather less, alternanthera very little. 



