286 Vines Grown from Cuttings. 
reported. Besides economy of wood in getting a plant from 
each bud of the cane, which is sometimes an object, growing 
from single eyes is advocated because of the satisfactory root 
system secured, which, as the engraving shows, much resembles 
that of a seedling. The use of single eyes is obviously better 
adapted to nursery than to field growth. 
The Use of Longer Cutiings.—There are several kinds of 
cuttings generally recognized by vine growers, of which two 
may be specified, as follows: The ordinary cutting consisting 
wholly of the wood of the previous season’s growth and a cut- 
ting which retains more or less of the older growth. Where the 
cutting retains a small cross-section of an older cane, it is termed 
a “mallet cutting,” from its obvious resemblance thereto, as 
shown at B in the engraving. Some held that this round piece 
of old wood is undesirable because it is apt to decay, and they 
Different Forms of Vine Cuttings. 
restrict the old wood to the top fragment, which carries the dor- 
mant buds at the base of the cane. Such a cutting is shown 
at C in engraving. _ 
Though the use of the old wood is correct enough in theory 
and satisfactory in practise, it is the ordinary cutting, shown at 
A in the engraving, which is relied upon in vine propagation. 
There is, however, wide difference in opinion and practise as to 
how long this cutting should be to secure the best results. Or- 
dinary cuttings, as used in California, vary in length from ten 
inches to three feet. Clearly enough this disagreement is due 
in part, at least, to different local conditions under which the 
vine is to make its growth, but two things are generally ac- 
cepted as the result of California practise. and this is, perhaps, 
only confirmatory of experience abroad: First, that the tendency 
is toward the use of shorter cuttings than formerly; second, that 
where the longer are used, they should be set obliquely, so as 
not to bury the lower extremities too deeply in the ground. 
What distance is too deep depends, to a great degree, upon the 
soil and locality, for a cutting will grow good roots at a much 
