54 



PHOPAGATION OF THE ROSE. 



String ; take hold of the stock firmly, and shorten both the branches 

 to a foot, or even less ; then with your knife, out a slit in the bark, 

 within half an inch of the base of the branch upward, and on the upper 

 side, an inch and a half long ; about the middle of this sUt, make a 

 small cut across ; then with your ivory, or thin wood — or more 

 properly, if you have it, with the handle of your budding knife — raise 

 up the bark on both sides ; then take the branch of your rose tree 



from which you take your buds, and with your sharp knife, shave out 

 of the branch a thin piece of the wood, beginning half an inch below 

 a leaf, and taking the knife along to come out half an inch above the 

 leaf. This small bit has to be inserted under the bark on both sides, 

 bringing the leaf, which is where the bud is, to the exact place where 

 the cross cut is ; when it is neatly inserted, take your piece of matting 



and place the middle of it across the sUt just under the leaf; pass it 

 under, and cross it backward and forward along the branch till the 

 bark is completely tied down close, and only the leaf and bud exposed. 



