THE NURSERY 41 



methods answer nearly every purpose. Roses, however, 

 are best increased by cuttings, and Pinks are easily 

 multiplied in this manner. When one has something 

 particularly nice in the way of an alpine Pink, or some 

 pretty garden variety, it is best not to trust to its seed, 

 for Pinks cross so easily that they cannot be depended 

 upon to come true to type. After the Pink has flowered 

 and new growth has started, take a nice new shoot three 

 or four inches long and cut it off just below the point 

 where a pair of leaves clasps the stem this is a joint. 

 These two leaves should be removed and the cutting is 

 then ready to plant. It should be inserted in wet sand 

 which must never be allowed to dry out, and the cutting 

 should be carefully shaded from the sun. There will be 

 roots in a week or ten days, and in a few days more the 

 little plant may be shifted to better soil, either in small 

 pots, a frame, or in a spot in the nursery, not fully ex- 

 posed to the sun. 



Plants of a woody character take longer to root, thus, 

 Rose cuttings will be from four to five weeks putting 

 forth roots. Rose cuttings may be taken at any time of 

 the growing year, but for amateurs the best time is in 

 summer, when a young shoot has developed a flower- 

 bud to about the size of a pea. The shoot may be 

 several inches long and the flower-bud is, of course, re- 

 moved. Insert in damp sand in the same manner as 

 Pinks. Some Roses root with difficulty the lovely 

 Moss Roses for instance, but Teas and Chinas and many 



