156 YARD AND GARDEN 



PROPAGATION BY CUTTINGS 



Another method of propagation is by cut- 

 tings, but it rarely proves successful in the 

 hands of the amateur. If he will provide him- 

 self, however, with a box of clean, sharp sand, 

 and is prepared to give the cuttings the at- 

 tention they require, failure need not by any 

 means be the result of his efforts in this direc- 

 tion. Select a short piece of a foliage stem 

 where the growth possesses a bud, lateral or 

 terminal, and, making a clean cut with a sharp 

 knife, insert the lower end of the cutting thus 

 obtained in the moist sand. It is always best 

 to have the lower end of the slip a node of the 

 stem. Remove a part of the foliage of the cut- 

 ting before insertion and cover the sand with 

 glass in order to maintain the rooting medium 

 at a slightly higher temperature than the or- 

 dinary atmosphere. Propagation by this 

 method has the advantage of insuring quick 

 results and the perpetuation of the parent va- 

 riety — not always certain, as already said, 

 when seed is the only reliance. 



