76 MANUAL OF MODERN VITICULTURE. 



calcareous soils. These means may be grouped in two- 

 classes 1st. Those which hasten the development of the 

 roots; '2ml. Those which prevent desiccation till the roots 

 start to grow. 



The tirst means can be arrived at by . stratification^, 

 soaking, barking, torsion or bruising. 



(A.) Stratification. This consists in burying the cutting* 

 during winter in very light soil or slightly moist sand, so a& 

 to determine the formation of callus^} It has been recom- 

 mended to strike the cuttings vertically and upside down, 

 as it was thought that it would cause the sap to run towards 

 the upper bud, which, when planted, would be the lower 

 bud, and furnish the roots with abundant food. The experi- 

 ments carried out at the School of Agriculture of Mont- 

 pellier with this object did not show any difference between 

 this method and the ordinary horizontal method of stratifi- 

 cation. When the cuttings are taken out of the heaps of 

 sand, they should be dipped in water to prevent them from 

 drying before planting. 



(B.) Soaking. The soaking of cuttings in water produces 

 effects similar to those of stratification, but, if prolonged, 

 may cause disadvantages which never happen with the latter 

 process. The wood is liable to lose, through maceration^ 

 a part of the soluble matters it contains, or to rot ; there- 

 fore, it must only be used when stratification is impossible, 

 and should not last more than five or six days. 



(C.) Barking. This is done with the object of inducing the 

 formation of callus, which seems to play the part of roots 

 for a time, and to lay bare the layer of cells from which 

 the roots are thrown. It is done by removing two thongs 

 of bark on the part which is to be buried ; a small tool, 

 made by Leydier and Leucieux, enables this operation to be 

 performed rapidly. We may arrive at the same result by 

 torsion or bruising, but the water always penetrates through 

 the splits, reaching the pith and causing it to decay, so that 

 by the use of the latter method we rarely obtain healthy 

 plants. To sum up, barking, which has been used fora 

 very long time in the South of France, is preferable, and 

 can be applied together with stratification. 



(D.) Watering, fyc. Watering and mulching fix in the 

 soil the water necessary to the growth of the cutting, but 

 can only be used practically in nurseries. It greatly 



