ETON NATUKE-STUDY 



NEW PLANTS FROM OLD PIECES 



A willow twig broken from the tree and merely stuck into the 

 ground will grow. Little difficulty, also, will be met with in 

 "striking" the shoots of roses or currants after their leaves have 

 fallen. To grow plants from leafy cut- 

 tings is, however, not always so easy. 

 Success depends upon the powers of the 

 foliage to retain moisture, and upon the 

 devices of the horticulturist to prevent 

 the leaves from flagging until roots are 

 formed to supply them with water. 

 Cuttings with fleshy leaves grow well, 

 as do those with a substantial stem and 

 hairy foliage, like the common "ger- 

 anium" (see figure 141). As active 

 growth means the need for plenty of air, 

 and cuttings to be grown in pots should 

 be set near the porous sides of these and 

 in light soil * so that the new tissues 

 may breathe properly. Some thick 

 leaves, should they be broken off a plant 

 and allowed to lie on the ground, will 

 send up of their own accord quite a 

 forest of young plants (see figure 144). 

 Similarly if a scale be detached from 

 one of the bulbs of the lily, it may produce 



* Some plants, the roots of which work in asso- 

 ciation with threads of fungi, need to be "struck" FIGURE 142. Young Lily bulbs grow- 

 in peaty soil, which contains their allies. ing from an old scale. 



