THE PROPAGATION OF PLANTS 



135 



The stems of a few plants, such as the black-cap rasp- 

 berry, tend to curve toward the ground. Roots will 

 form at the tip if it is in close contact with the soil or 



Fig. 48. — Propagating a plant by tip layers. 



covered by it. The new plant thus formed is called a 

 tip layer. If the ground is kept free from weeds and the 

 soil loose and mellow, the formation of both runners and 

 tip layers is favored. 



Plants hke the grape, the snowball and the rambler 

 rose, whose stems do 

 not naturally curve 

 toward the ground, 

 may be layered. This 

 is done by bringing a 

 stem carefully to the 

 ground and holding it 

 in place by covering 

 it with earth. Roots 

 then grow out from 

 the buried stem, and the new plant which forms at this 

 point is called a layer. 



The roots of many plants send up sprouts which are 

 called suckers. Such plants do not develop good root 



Fig. 49. — Propagating a plant by layers. 



