CUTTINGS 19 



less state, made of late autumn wood, where transpiration has practically 

 ceased, no heat at all is needed ; cuttings of such trees as willows, tamarisk, 

 poplars, and currants, as well as very many more, take root in the open 

 ground. As a general principle it may be stated that the younger and 

 softer cuttings of hardy trees and shrubs are, the more essential a close 

 atmosphere and bottom heat become. As the growths from which 

 cuttings are made harden and become more woody witf) the advancing 

 season, the emission of roots becomes, in general, slower. Things must 

 not be hurried, and less bottom heat is needed. Whether it is best to 

 take cuttings young, medium, or old, in the case of any given plant, 

 depends on its nature. It is a matter on which experience is the only 

 sure guide, and is dealt with in the descriptive part of this work, usually 

 under the notice of the genus. 



For the vast majority of the plants dealt with in the present work that 

 are habitually increased by cuttings, it will be found that the most 

 suitable time to make them is from mid-July to the end of August. That 

 is the busy time of the hardy tree and shrub propagator who relies on 

 cuttings. The growths of the year have by then become moderately firm 

 and woody ; they are old enough and solid enough to retain their vitality 

 sufficiently, and yet not so old as to have become hard and hide-bound. 

 The character of the wood at a given date varies of course with the 

 season : in hot summers it is ready sooner. 



For the majority of new shrubs I should first try their propagation 

 by cuttings at this intermediate state of the current season's growth 

 in gentle bottom heat. If they fail then, harder wood should be 

 tried, and if that fails too, more succulent growth the following early 

 summer. 



Making the cutting. The expert propagator is very careful in 

 selecting the growths from which he proposes to make his cuttings, 

 especially leaf-bearing ones. He avoids very strong, vigorous, leading or 

 " sappy " shoots, but usually prefers the short side twigs, a few inches 

 long, which he can break off with a slight " heel " of the previous year's 

 wood attached at the base. This " heel " of older wood is often a valu- 

 able factor, and cuttings possessing it will root when those without it fail. 

 I suppose its firmer tissues prevent decay at the base. In its absence the 

 base of a cutting should be just below a joint. The average leafy cutting 

 is from 2 to 4 ins. long, about one-third of which is inserted in the soil* 

 Cuttings of heaths and such like shrubs with very fine branchlets are 

 made i to ij ins. long. If the cutting be too long, the succulent top 

 rather than the heel should be cut away. With cuttings that have 

 .inconveniently large leaves, it is a good plan to clip off half each leaf, 

 and of course the whole of the leaves at the base of the cutting must be 

 cut cleanly away. A sharp knife is an absolute necessity for making 



