CUTTINGS OF GROWING WOOD. 



67 



Sometimes the growth is so short or the stock so scarce 

 that the cutting cannot be made long enough to hold itsell 

 in the soil. In such case a toothpick or splinter is 

 tied to the cutting to hold it erect, as in the cactus 

 cutting, Fig. 72, or the geranium cutting, Fig. 73. 

 In the window garden, soft cuttings may be started 

 in a deep plate which is filled half or two-thirds 

 full of sand and is then Inlled to the brim with 

 water, and not shaded ; this method, practiced on 

 a larger scale, is sometimes useful during the hot 

 summer months. If bottom heat is desired, the 

 plate may be set upon the back part of the kitchen 

 stove. Oleanders usually root best when mature 

 shoots are placed in bottles of water. Refractory 

 subjects may be inserted through the hole in tlie 

 bottom of an inverted flower-pot, as explained on 

 pages 51 and 52. 



Cuttings from the nearly 'cuiimg 

 mature green wood are em- 'ipi'^i „ t'7r 

 ployed for hard-wooded (^Vi)- 

 r,^, trees and shrubs, as diervillas (wei- 

 gela), roses, hydrangeas, lilacs, etc. 

 They are cut in essentially the same 

 manner as the hard-wood cuttings 

 described on page 55. They are often 

 taken in summer, when the buds have 

 developed and the wood has about 

 attained its growth. They are cut to 

 two to four or five buds, and are 

 planted an inch or two deep in shaded 

 frames. They are kept close for 

 some days after setting, and the tops 

 are sprinkled frequently. Care must 

 be taken not to set them too deep ; 

 they are rarely put in over an inch, if 

 the cutting is six or seven inches long. 



"June-struck cuttings" are sometimes advantageously 



■j;^. Cutting held by 

 toothpick (xl^i). 



