38 



The report of the committee on permanent field headquarters 

 for the Club was deferred until a later date. 



The scientific part of the program consisted of an illustrated 

 lecture by Mr. A. E. Hitchcock of the Boyce Thompson Institute 

 entitled "Vegetative Propagation." 



The lecture dealt primarily with the rooting responses of stem 

 cuttings as influenced by the type of material selected, by the 

 amount and type of leaf surface, and by the nature of the 

 medium. It was pointed out that in some cases roots grow out 

 from a restricted region on the cutting as, for example, the base 

 of a current year's growth, whether or not two year old wood was 

 attached, (Prunus tomentosa and Daphne cneorum) or from the 

 nodes (Viburnum opulus and Cotoneaster horizontalis) . 



Of particular interest was the fact that in many cases better 

 rooting occurred when all the leaves were left on greenwood 

 cuttings than when the lower leaves were removed according 

 to common nursery practice. The attached buried leaves ap- 

 peared to act as water absorbing and water storage organs for 

 the entire cutting. Under high evaporating conditions, cuttings 

 with lower leaves removed would wilt readily, whereas those with 

 all leaves left on would remain in a turgid condition. 



Acid peat moss alone, or mixed with sand, proved in most 

 cases to be superior to sand. Although acid peat moss was 

 injurious to flowering almond, privet, and Prunus tomentosa 

 cuttings, this effect was eliminated by partial or complete 

 neutralization of the acid peat moss with powdered calcium 

 carbonate. (Complete neutralization was obtained by adding 

 from 7 to 10 grams of carbonate per liter of peat moss.) 



A specific type of root response, characterized by absence of 

 secondar>' fibrous roots and a marked increase in root diameter, 

 was obtained when the buds were removed from grape cuttings 

 taken in December. Privet cuttings showed a retarded rooting 

 response when similarly treated. 



Cuttings of Dahlia (Jersey Beauty and Ide \'er Warner) were 

 found to be influenced by the length of day. Whereas cuttings 

 taken in early fall formed fibrous roots, those taken in late fall 

 formed storage roots or various other types of storage organs at 

 the base of the cutting or along the stem portion. At the same 

 time there was a marked tendency to form flower buds in late 

 fall and early winter instead of producing vegetative growth. 



