CHAPTER XXIX 



Means of Propagation 



How then can we propagate our fruit trees 

 and decorative plants so that we need not 

 fear to see them degenerate, since if sown 

 they will, sooner or later, revert to the 

 original wild type ? They must be propa- 

 gated by shoots and not by seeds. We must 

 transfer the shoots or branches from one 

 plant to another, which is grafting, or else 

 directly to the ground, as in layering. These 

 are invaluable methods which allow us to 

 fix in the plant the perfection obtained by 

 long years of work, and to profit by the im- 

 provements already effected by our fore- 

 runners, instead of inaugurating a develop- 

 ment for which a human, life would be in- 

 sufficient. 



The layer, the cutting, and the graft 

 faithfully reproduce all the characters of the 

 plant from which they are taken. Such as 

 were the fruit, flowers and foliage of the 



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