150 PRACTICAL PLANT PROPAGATION 



In the propagating of the numerous sports of the Boston Fern, 

 should a new one appear, and if a runner starts at its base, it will 

 often carry the characteristics of the frond above it; otherwise the 

 rhizome may be divided, in which case those frouds not having the 

 desired characteristics should be removed. 



Propagation by bulblets or plantlets. It is interesting to note that 

 some Ferns produce, upon their fronds, small bulblets which even 

 start to grow while attached to the parent leaf (see fig. 83). The fronds 

 of such Ferns should be placed on the sand, or in a flat of leafmold, so 

 that the growth from the bulblets may be encouraged. 



Asplenium bulbiferum, Gymnogramma, Cystopteris bulbiferwn and 

 Polystichum angulare var. prolifera produce bulblets. Pteris 

 (Doryopteris) palmata produces little plantlets at the base of the frond. 



Propagation by tip layers. In propagating Camptosorus rhizophyllus 

 the Walking Fern; Asplenium ebonoides and A. pinnatifidwn\ Adian- 

 tum caudatum and A. Edgworthi, the tips of the fronds should be pegged 

 down to the soil, where they take root readily. 



Propagation by tubers. Nephrolepis exaltata var. luberosa produces 

 beneath the soil tubers which may be used to increase the plants. 



Propagation by top layers. The tree Ferns, such as Alsophila and 

 Cyathea, may be propagated by Chinese layers as described on page 99 

 (see fig. 46). 



LILIES 



Lily propagation. The various Lilies and especially Easter Lilies 

 (forms of Lilium longifloruni) have been propagated for many years by 

 the rooting of bulb scales and by the natural division of the bulbs, but 

 recently a method of raising Easter Lilies from seed has been strongly 

 advocated as a method by which certain diseases may be avoided. 



With rare or unusual species of bulbs there is still an advantage in 

 propagating by bulb scales. The scales are treated like cuttings and 

 are placed in benches of sand or a sandy loam at a temperature between 

 45 degrees and 60 degrees, when small bulbels will be produced. Some 

 tender sorts need bottom heat. 



Division is the commonest method, as it is the natural tendency of 

 most Lily bulbs to divide after flowering. 



Easter Lilies from seeds. Geo. W. Oliver, of the United States 

 Department of Agriculture, who has conducted many experiments 

 upon raising Easter Lilies from seed, writes as follows: 



' ' Seed of the Easter Lily is not offered for sale by any of the seedsmen 

 so far as known, therefore it must be produced as wanted by the grower. 

 This is not attended by any serious difficulty, provided the grower 

 knows what to do at the proper time. The plants selected as seed 

 bearers should be strong and absolutely free from disease. This con- 

 dition will be indicated by the absence of discoloration of any kind on 

 the foliage. 



"To produce seeds of the best quality the mother bulbs should be 

 planted out in beds, where they are less liable to be neglected in water- 

 ing. It is preferable not to use the poUen on the stigmas of the same 

 plant. Several hundred good seeds may be secured from each plant. 

 All of the flowers on a plant will set seeds if the stigmas are pollinated, 



