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Gardening for Amateurs 



Layering Shrubs. Shrubs are layered in 

 the same way as Carnations, but generally 

 in autumn (the Clematis in summer) instead 

 of, as in the case of border Carnations, during 

 July and August ; a slit is made in the 

 centre of the stem, then along it for an inch ; 

 stout pegs are usually necessary to keep the 

 layer in position. Roses and Clematises 

 frequently root freely without being cut, and 

 in the fruit garden natural layers are often 

 produced in a similar manner. Some bushes 

 or trees such as the Filbert, Willow, Quince, 

 and Paradise stocks are made to produce layers 

 in a different way : The main stems are cut 

 off 6 inches from the ground in winter ; 

 next spring a large number of twigs or 

 suckers will spring up, and in the middle of 

 summer these are buried, covered with 

 almost 12 inches of sandy compost which 

 is kept moist during dry weather ; every one 

 will form roots under these conditions, and 

 they may be removed next season and 

 planted in the borders. Multiple layering 

 is often resorted to ; in such a case a 

 long stem is laid on the surface of the 

 soil ; tongues are made behind every leaf 

 or bud, and very soon a large number of 

 plants are obtained. 



Layering other Plants. Many other plants 

 can be layered. Lapagerias are propagated 

 by multiple layers ; Strawberries frequently 



have their " runners " layered into pots 

 which are plunged in the border alongside 

 the parent plant, while some Ferns need 

 simply to have the fronds pegged down on 

 the soil. 



Stem Layering. In the greenhouse shrubby 

 plants occasionally become " leggy," or bear 

 a bunch of foliage on top of a long bare stem ; 

 this is most noticeable in the case of Aralia, 

 Castor Oil plant, Dracaena, and the like. 

 Immediately below the lowest leaves a 

 notch and tongue are made as in other cases, 

 the cut extending half-way through the 

 stem ; a piece of charcoal is pushed into this 

 to keep it open, and moss is wrapped round 

 the wound and kept continually moist. 

 Sometimes a pot, sawn into halves is used 

 for the purpose, the parts being bound round 

 the incision by means of copper wire ; 

 a layer of charcoal is placed in the bottom, 

 then the pot is filled with a sandy compost. 

 If this is kept watered, roots will soon 

 form ; eight weeks after the work is done 

 cut a notch just below the pot ; a. week later 

 cut it a little deeper still and continue doing 

 this every week until at the end of the fifth 

 week the stem is cut through entirely and 

 the whole top removed, now rooted in the 

 moss or pot. Remove the soil or moss, trim 

 off the stump carefully, and pot the plant in a 

 small -sized pot. 



Pruning Climbing Roses. In pruning 

 Climbing Roses the removal of all old wood 

 is often advised, that which is young 

 alone being retained. There is really no 

 fault to find with this, but it should not 

 always be blindly followed. Where young 

 wood is abundant, well and good ; dispense 

 with the old by all means. But when, as 

 sometimes is the case, only a few young 

 growths have been produced, and yet a large 

 space has to be covered, it would be folly 

 to thin out too severely. This applies 

 particularly to the Wichuraiana Roses, 

 of which Dorothy Perkins is a familiar 

 example. If the growths which flowered 

 a year ago are examined, they will be seen 

 to differ from the young growths, in that they 

 have short shoots along them, and these 

 carried the blossoms the previous season. 



Where it is necessary to retain a few of the 

 older rods, these shoots should be cut back 

 to a couple of eyes from the main rod. This 

 will cause them to break into growth fairly 

 strongly, and the young growths will in due 

 course flower, although, it must be admitted, 

 not so finely as those produced on the young 

 stems. Such Roses as Hiawatha, Minnehaha 

 and Lady Gay, in addition to the one men- 

 tioned above, may be treated in this manner, 

 but it should be clearly understood that 

 such a plan is not recommended where 

 strong well-ripened stems of the previous 

 season's growth are available in sufficient 

 quantity. It is also necessary to distinguish 

 between the Wichuraiana and the Rambler 

 Roses proper, as represented by Crimson 

 Rambler ; the latter varieties give very poor 

 results from old stems. 



