PROPAGATION BY BUDS — LAYERAGE 



69 



plants either to transplant or to liear fruit. In field practice no such 

 care as this is taken, the plants Ijeing allowed to root freeb^ within 

 the limits of the matted or hedgerow width. As in all other asexual 

 methods of propa.gation, runners produce the same variety as the 

 parent plants from which thev are formed. 



103. Rapid strawherry propagation. — C. Gazeau, a French in- 

 vestigator, claims that strawberries may be rapidly propagated 

 thus : 



FIG. 60— STRAWBERRY PLANTS READY FOR SETTING 



1. Potted runner plant three weeks after taking root. 2. Plant typical of those 

 used in spring setting. This has gro\\n naturally in the field. 3. Same plant as 

 in 1 with earth washed off, compared with plant of same age but not potted. 



When the runners first develop terminal buds with rosettes of 

 leaves, they are layered with only the leaves exposed. Thus they 

 are protected from accidents and the weather and are in most favor- 

 able conditions for rooting. In about two weeks roots will have 

 formed and the runners extended. These extensions may be rooted 

 similarlj' and the operation repeate( six o/ eight or even more times. 

 Mother plants ofte i develop six or eight runners, so this would mean 

 36 to 48 plants thus far. But the first rooted layers will also de- 

 velop secondary runners soon after the primary ones have struck root 

 and these secondary runners may be treated like the primary ones. 

 Thus the number of plants would be limited almost wholly by the 

 season, the efforts of the propagator and the space at command. 

 But then the terminal buds ma\- lie used for making cuttings as soon 



