Propagation of Plants 97 



branch may be severed from the parent plant and reset. 

 This is the usual way that Wistaria is increased; also the 

 honeysuckle and many other plants which I enumerate later. 

 Sometimes a branch cannot be bent down, and then the 

 method used is different. A flower-pot or similar receptacle 

 is cut in two lengthwise; the branch is run through the hole 

 in the bottom and the two halves of the pot are then tied 

 firmly together and filled with earth. The incision in the 

 stem should come well below the surface of the earth in the 

 pot, and the latter held securely in place by building a tem- 

 porary support for it to rest on. This is a more difficult 

 method, though frequently used by nurserymen. The clean 

 cut partial incision in the stem promotes the formation of roots 

 at that point, and the root formation may also be facilitated 

 by scraping the bark lightly where the roots are to form. 



Another method of propagation is by cuttings, which may 

 be taken from the ripe old wood, the half ripened wood or 

 new green shoots according to the plant. They are set in 

 sand or sandy loam so as to cover two or three eyes or buds, 

 allowing from two to six inches of the wood above ground; 

 they are usually covered with a tumbler or glass jar for a 

 season to prevent their becoming dry. If kept too moist 

 they are inclined to rot; but if allowed to become dry, the 

 delicate rootlets are killed at once. Cuttings should have 

 little or no sun, for a time; and various devices have been 

 worked out to promote their rooting well. One of the most 

 practical suggestions is to take a box, and cut the sides so as 

 to form a slanting top on which is fitted 'a glass frame. The 

 box is filled with sand mixed with a little rich loam and the 

 cuttings set with but one or two eyes above the earth. The 

 glass cover retains the moisture, and may be lifted a little 

 each day to admit air. Bottom heat, which may be derived 

 from manure under the sandy soil, will facilitate growth if the 



