422 



CUTTAGE 



CUTTAGE 



Although it is tender plants, in the main, which are 

 propagated by cuttings of growing wood, the above 

 methods can be practiced advantageously with some 

 hardy plants. The wood, 

 which is invariably 

 more successful if hard- 

 ened, is obtained either 

 from plants forced for 

 this purpose, e. g., spi- 

 rea, Deutzia gracilis, 

 etc. , or it is gathered in 

 June and July out of 

 doors, e. g., lilac, hy- 

 drangea, etc. Cuttings of 

 growing wood should be 

 potted in 2- or 3-inoh 

 pots, in a rather sandy 

 soil, when the roots are from H-J^ inches long. It is 

 sometimes good economy to box them, i. e., plant them 

 a few inches apart in flats, when not immediately re- 

 quired. 



(2) Long Cuttings of Hipened Wood in Open Air.— 

 This method is used to propagate many hardy trees and 

 shrubs, e. g., willows, currants, grapes, forsythia, etc. 

 Wood of the current year's growth is gathered in au- 

 tumn or early winter, before severe frost, and either 

 stored in a cool cellar, covering with moss or fresh earth 

 to prevent drying, or immediately made into cuttings. 

 These (see Pig. 626) should be made 6 inches or more 

 long and should contain at least 2 buds. It is not neoes- 



Propagatinsf-box. 



The excrescences, Isnots orknaurs, which are found on 

 the trunks and the main limbs of olive trees, are some- 

 times used as cuttings for propagation. 



(3) Short cuttings ofripenedwood (Fig. 

 627) are used under glass witlT tender or 

 half-hardy species, with new introduc- 

 tions, in oases where the grower is short 

 of stock, and when the plant is delicate 

 and small. The wood should be gathered 

 before severe frost and the cuttings 

 made and planted directly in October 

 and November. Make them from 2-4 

 inches long ( sometimes a single eye only 

 is used), and plant with a dibble, in -^^ 

 pure sand in pots, pans or flats (boxes ^^ 

 about 16 inches square and 3 inches -^^ 

 deep ) . If a layer of potting soil is placed •'^i 

 under the sand, the young plants have 

 something to feed upon and do not need 

 to be potted so soon after rooting ; if 

 this is done, drainage should be given. 

 It is important to keep them cool until a callus is formed 

 or roots produced. If the buds start into growth before 

 this, the cuttings become exhausted and are likely to 

 die. After rooting,— the time required varies from 

 one to six months— they can either be potted or the 



635. Hardened- 

 wood cuttine 

 of dahlia. 



623- Small propagating-box, adapted 

 to a window. 



sary to cut to a bud at the base, but the upper cut 

 should be just above one. They should be tied in 

 bundles with tarred rope, taking care to have them lie 

 "heads and tails" to facilitate planting, and with the 

 butts on the same level, to promote callusing. They 

 should then be buried in sandy soil, with the butts 

 down and protected against frost. In early spring 

 they should be firmly planted in V-shaped trenches 

 in well prepared soil : set an inch or so apart, with 

 the rows 1 or IJ^ feet apart. The upper bud should 

 be just at the surface ; to prevent suckers the lower 

 buds may be removed. In autumn they should be dug, 

 graded and heeled-iu for winter. Some varieties will 



624. Propaefating-box or hood. 



require a second or third year's growth in the nursery; 

 others are ready for permanent planting, as willows 

 and poplars, which often grow 6 feet the first year. 

 This is one of the very cheapest ways of propagating, 

 and will pay where only 25 per cent root. This method 

 is generally used with deciduous-leaved plants, but 

 some conifers, e. g., Siberian arborvitse, will strike. 

 Remove enough twigs to get a clean stem for plant- 

 ing, and allow 2 or 3 inches of top above ground. 



626. Long cuttings of ripened v^ood. 



strong-growing sorts be planted out in well pre- 

 pared beds in May or June, where they are likely to 

 make a satisfactory growth. The weaker kinds can re- 

 main a year in pots or flats, be wintered in a pit, and 

 planted out the next spring. Some greenhouse plants, 

 e. g.. Camellia LauresHnus, tender grapes, etc., are 

 propagated in this way with cuttings of fully ripened 

 wood, and others, as cactus, dracsena, etc., with wood 

 which is much older. They should be given the care 

 described under the head of (1) Cuttings of Growing 

 Wood, but they must not be forced too hard at first. 

 The temperature should be regulated by the nature of 

 the plant. The safest rule to follow is to give a few de- 

 grees more heat for propagating than the plant received 

 when the cutting was removed. 



(i) Boot-cuttings (Fig. 628) are made of either root 

 or rootstock and are useful in propa- 

 gating some plants, either in the 

 greenhouse or in the open air. Ten- 

 der plants, like bouvardia, and those 

 which are hardy but of delicate 

 growth, e. g.. Anemone Japonica,a,ve 

 handled under glass ; blackberries, 

 horseradish, etc.. out of doors. The 

 cuttings are made in autumn or win- 

 ter, the roots of hardy plants being 

 gathered before severe frost and 

 either planted directly or kept in 

 moss until spring. This process of 



.storing develops a callus and has a - 



tendency to produce buds. For green- 627. Short cuttings 

 house work, the cuttings are made of ripened wood. 



