58 THE GEAPE CULTDKISl. 



be gro-wn from such cuttings ; but it is equally true, that 

 other portions of the vine will, with proper care (though 

 not always quite as readily), make vines equally as good. 



It. matters little what form of cutting is adopted, nor 

 does any particular portion of the wood possess any supe- 

 riority over another, provided it is thoroughly ripe and 

 healthy. The requisites are: to keep its vitality unim 

 paired from the time it is taken from the vine until it is 

 planted, then give the cuttings a position where they will 

 secure plenty of heat and moisture with a full supply of 

 nutriment to sustain them when they begin growth. 



THE CALLUS ON CUTTINGS. 



A callus is that peculiar excrescence which is usually 

 found on that portion of a cutting where the wood has 

 been exposed by severing from the plant. The formation 

 of the callus precedes that of roots, and is generally taken 

 as a sign that roots are about to be produced. But it 

 must not be supposed, because the cuttings have made 

 the first move, that the second will as readily follow ; 

 because there are hundreds of plants, the cuttings of 

 which, packed in damp moss, in a warm room, will become 

 well callused over, produce roots, and still it is an ex- 

 tremely diflBcult matter tp make roots grow. 



Many inexperienced propagators seem to think that if 

 they can only get the callus to form, and a few roots to 

 start, the cutting is a sure thing. Every little while we 

 hear of some wonderful discovery in regard to propagat- 

 ing plants, and have just heard of one made in Connecticut. 

 The discoverer proposes to sell cuttings callused and with 

 white roots in the process of formation. He has found 

 out what is well known to the rest of the world, that with 

 moisture and heat, and partial exclusion from air, while 

 roots are readily produced on cuttings. 



