THE USE OF SHOOTS FOR PROPAGATING 171 



nipped off, so as to let as much material as possible wander 

 downwards, and not to let it be spent on the formation of new 

 shoots. 



The best time to cut down the parent plant is at the end 

 of winter, as there will be no more frosts to damage the 

 wound, and the dormant buds will soon begin to grow out. 



This method is recommended for apples, quinces, and 

 plums. In the case of the former, in many varieties there 

 is sufficient root formation in the first year, while in the case 

 of quinces, wood of two years' standing seems to be most 

 advantageous. The branches may with advantage be twisted 

 before covering them with soil at the point where it is 

 desired for the roots to make their appearance. In the case 

 of crab-apples, the quickest method of propagation is to cut 

 in pieces the smaller roots, of about the thickness of a quill, 

 which may have dropped off from the roots of a larger tree 

 which has been ti-ansplanted, and cover them with soil. They 

 very soon produce adventitious buds and form very fine young 

 plants. 



It is, however, more usual to bury the layered branches in 

 the soil than to heap earth up round the plant. The parent 

 plants, which are kept short, are surrounded by a trench, into 

 which the strong shoots are bent down in such a way that 

 their ends project far from the filled-up trench, and they are 

 then cut back to two or three eyes. According to the slowness 

 with which the branches form roots at the place where they 

 are bent, they may be further helped on by ringing, twisting, 

 or cutting. This method is employed in Gooseberries, Red Cur- 

 rants, Vines, Hazels, Quinces, and Mulberries, Elders, Guelder 

 Rose, Forsythia, and Magnolia. Among Conifers it succeeds 

 with Juniperus, Taxus, Thnja, and Sequoia. In France it is 

 emploj^ed for Aucuha, Rhododendron, and other more delicate 

 shrubs. 



The long branches of climbers (Glycine, Arisfolochia, 

 Lonicera, Clematis, Hedcra, Tecoma, &c.) may be arranged so 

 as to form a series of arches, the intervening portions of the 

 branches being covered up with soil. Thus between two 

 covered-up pieces there is a leaf-bearing and food-providing 

 portion. 



