BT CUTTINGS OF IMMATUEB GEOWTHS. 163 



leaves should be allowed to remain on the cutting, for the 

 purpose of assisting in the assimilation of the sap and 

 preparation of the material required to produce roots. 

 In selecting cuttings of ligneous plants, it is advisable, 

 ■ffhen convenient, to take the small, short side shoots 

 that may be cut off close to the more mature wood, leav- 

 ing the hip or ring of half ripened wood attached at the 

 base ; for, as I have stated on a previous page, in regard 

 to ripe wood cuttings, there is usually an aggregation of 

 buds, and more available organized matter, at this point 

 than elsewhere. The lower leaves on the cutting should 

 be removed. This should be done with a sharp knife, and 

 the wound made left with a smooth surface ; for severing 

 with a dull knife, or crushing with shears, and even pull- 

 ing off the leaves by hand (as often practised by careless 

 gardeners, who are in such haste that they seldom do 

 their work well), will not answer when making cuttings of, 

 the soft shoots of delicate plants. The old saying that 

 anything that is worth doing at all, is worth doing well, is 

 certainly applicable here, for no one can be too careful in 

 making and planting cuttings of the green shoots oi 

 woody plants and succulent stems of herbaceous plants. 

 It is also well to make up such cuttings m the house, or 

 where they will not be exposed to the direct rays of the 

 sun while they are being made. 



It is not always practicable to make cuttings of this 

 form, for some woody plants will produce few or no lat- 

 eral shoots, unless the leading ones are pinched back for 

 the purpose of forcing out side branches, and where the 

 latter are not available the terminal, or leading shoots, 

 may be used for cuttings, and with some kinds of plants 

 the entire new growth of the season may be divided up 

 for this purpose. In some cases the half ripened, or 

 nearly mature shoots of herbaceous plants, are better for 

 cuttings than a younger growth. With the half woody 

 and herbaceous plants, the tips of both upright and lat» 



