40 AGRICULTURE 



bud is a part of only one plant. A seed is often made by 

 two plants, and the different seedlings may resemble either 

 parent, while each budded tree has only one parent 



Cuttings. Plants are increased either by planting seeds 

 or buds. If, however, you should plant in the ground a 

 detached bud from a grape-vine or from 

 any fruit tree, it would not grow. It would 

 die (i) because a bud cannot at first get 

 any food from the soil, and (2) because 

 such a bud has not much food stored up 

 to nourish it until it forms roots of its own. 

 But you may so plant it that it will have 

 much ready-made food convenient. Be- 

 fore the leaves start, cut off pieces of 

 fig trees or grape-vine of last year's growth 

 six or eight inches long and containing at 

 least three buds (Fig. 30). These pieces 

 of stem or branch are called cuttings. 

 Plant these in sandy soil, the upper bud 

 just above the surface and the lower bud 

 deep in the soil. If you have done this as 

 a skilful gardener does, you will see after 

 Fio. 30. A Cur- a ew wee ks that the upper bud has begun 



TING 



to develop into a branch, which in time will 

 be a real bearing grape-vine. If you dig up one of these 

 little grape sticks that has thus begun to grow, you will 

 find that tiny roots have grown. It was the food material 

 stored in the stem or cutting that enabled the buds to 

 grow. 



The use of various kinds of cuttings is the usual way of 



