144 PRACTICAL PLANT PROPAGATION 



plants of the species A. excelsa. The veneer graft is mostly used. In 

 any case, graft low so that when the plant is repotted the union will 

 come below the ground level and develop additional roots." 



ARDISIA 



Cuttings. The cuttings taken in late Winter will root at 65 degrees 

 to 70 degrees without trouble in about four weeks. Some growers prefer 

 cuttings because the plants branch near the soil. Of course, only a 

 limited stock could be grown by this method. 



Seed. The careful culture of Ardisias from seed is clearly described 

 by H. D. D. in The Florists' Exchange. "Select at Christmas as many 

 plants as you think will produce the amount of seed you wish to sow; 

 pick out the plants with the best berries, and allow the latter to get 

 fully ripe; this will be in January. Wash the seed to get it free of pulp 

 and sow in flats, using a good light soil; put the flats in a house at 

 60 degrees to 65 degrees. By May or early June they should have two 

 or three leaves; put them in one and three-quarter or two-inch pots 

 and carry in a partially shaded house during Summer; by a partly 

 shaded house I mean one with a strip of shading drawn down the glass, 

 which allows plenty of light but breaks the force of the sun. They will 

 probably need a shift to three-inch pots by September. Keep during 

 the Winter at 50 degrees to 60 degrees and by Spring you will have 

 excellent stock in three-inch pots. In May prepare a hotbed of manure 

 in a deep frame. Try to have the manure turned once or twice so the 

 heat will last as long as possible. Put four to five inches of good soil 

 on top of the manure, as soon as the heat has subsided. When the ther- 

 mometer drops to 80 degrees plant out the stock, cover with shaded 

 sash, syringe often, to prevent them from getting dry, and watch the 

 ventilation. Allow plenty of room in planting out, for they will grow 

 fast and form the tiers that will produce the berries. By August or 

 early September they will be fine stock, large enough to fill five and 

 one-half or six-inch pots, and twelve to eighteen inches tall, that is, of 

 fruiting size. 



"Now comes the critical time. Have prepared another lot of 

 manure, for another hotbed, in a deep frame, with shaded sash. See 

 that you have plenty of headroom above the manure. Put in five or 

 six inches of sawdust, shavings or spent hops in which to plunge the 

 stock. Lift and pot the plants and put back in the new hotbed, plung- 

 ing the pots. Look after the syringing with care. They will root 

 and be safe in about two weeks. Get them inside by October 1 ; any 

 light house kept at 50 degrees to 60 degrees will do now. They will 

 flower in March or early April. During the flowering period cut down 

 on the syringing. Give what air you can to keep the atmosphere dry; 

 it is a great assistance in setting the fruit. During the Summer keep 

 in a partly shaded house with plenty of air. By September or October 

 give full sun, but don't raise the temperature 50 degrees to 55 degrees 

 will do. All fruiting plants, as Oranges, Ardisias, Solanums, etc., 

 mature their fruit far better in a moderate temperature than in a high 

 one, since heat induces growth. You will have no trouble about the 

 fruit coloring; they will be right for Christmas and stock will sell 

 wholesale for from $24 to $36 per dozen. 



"You may feel that a second hotbed is not necessary, but it is; it 

 is the making of the plant. If after potting you put the plants in a 



