54 THE GRAPE CULTURIST. 



representation of a two-eye cutting at the end of the 

 first year. In this sketch the roots and top are neces- 

 sarily shown much shorter, in proportion to the length 

 of the cutting, than they were on the plant from which 

 the drawing was made, and the small rootlets cover all 

 the roots, while they are here represented on only a part. 

 When roots have these small appendages attached to 

 them in abundance they are called fibrous-rooted. 



All vines, when grown in congenial soil, will have 

 more or less fibrous roots, for it is through these that 

 the plant derives a large portion of its food from the 

 soil. They are often as minute as those shown in Fig. 

 16, and they are soon destroyed if exposed to the air. 



When cuttings are grown in the above manner they 

 are readily changed into one-eye cuttings, by severing 

 the stem just under the upper tier of roots ; this will 

 give as good a one-eye plant as though it were grown 

 under glass and from a single eye. Fig. 17 shows the 

 plant after the lower section of the roots has been 

 removed. 



Growing plants in this way involves a waste of buds, 

 and, moreover, cuttings are not so certain in the open air 

 as in the propagating house. 



It is very difficult to make some varieties grow from 

 cuttings in the open air, while others do so readily. 

 Some kinds require more moisture than others, and, if 

 planted in a situation where they will receive an abund- 

 ant supply throughout the season, they will often pro- 

 duce as strong plants as the others will in ordinary soil. 

 It is also sometimes advisable, with those kinds that do 

 not strike root readily, to plant the cuttings in the fall 

 in the same manner as we have described for two-eye 

 cuttings, then cover the bed with straw, or other mate- 

 rial, so that it shall not freeze. In the spring remove 

 the covering, leaving enough on the bed to keep it moist. 



Where the soil used for the cutting-bed is naturally 

 dry and porous, any or all the varieties may be planted 



