BOTTOM HEAT FOR CUTTINGS. 53 



they will wilt or "flag." A good cutting-bench should 

 be near the glass, and either exposed to the north or else 

 capable of being well shaded. A good bench, facing south 

 and shaded over the glass with a lath screen, is illustrated 

 in Fig. 58. The details of soils are discussed on the 

 following page. 



In outdoor work, soft cuttings are usually placed in an 

 ordinary coldframe, and these frames must be shaded. 

 They may be placed under trees or on the shady side of a 

 building, or if they are numerous, as in commercial estab- 

 lishments, a cloth screen should be provided, as shown in 

 Fig- 7, page 6. 



Bottom Heat is always essential to the best success with 

 cuttings. In outdoor work, this is supplied by the natural 

 heat of the soil in spring and summer, and it is often inten- 

 sified by burying hard-wooded cuttings bottom end up for 

 a time before planting them. This operation of inverting 

 cuttings is often practiced with grapes, particularly with the 

 Delaware and others which root with some difficulty. The 

 cuttings are tied in bundles and buried in a sandy place, 

 with the tops down, the butts being covered two or three 

 inches with sand. They may be put in this position in the 

 fall and allowed to remain until the ground begins to freeze 

 hard, or they may be buried in spring and allowed to remain 

 until May or June and then be regularly planted. In out- 

 door cuttage, the cuttings which are of medium length, 

 from 6 to 8 inches, derive more bottom heat than the very 

 long ones, such as were formerly used for the propagation 

 of the grape. In indoor work, bottom heat is obtained by 

 means of fermenting manure, or, preferably, by greenhouse 

 pipes. Cutting-benches should have abundant piping be- 

 neath, and in the case of many tropical and sub-tropical 

 species the bottom heat may be intensified by enclosing 

 the benches below, so that no heat can escape into the 

 walks. Doors can be placed in the partition alongside 

 the walk, to serve as ventilators if the heat should become 



