956 



THE BOOK OF GARDENING. 



saturation required in propagation will soon decompose it. 

 However, in large nurseries, where Ficus elastica are grown by 

 thousands, sawdust is always used. It is extremely light and 

 retains the heat very well. Cocoaniit-fibre has only been used 

 during recent years. It answ^ers very well, and in several nurseries 

 it is employed as a substitute for sand and sawdust ; but it must 

 be said of sand that it does not perish, whilst sawdust, fibre, 

 &C.5 soon become rotten. Our well-known British sphagnum 

 is an excellent factor, not only in the cultivation of Orchids, 

 but also in propagation. Nepenthes are successfully increased 

 when inserted in moss, but some growers prefer cocoanut- 

 fibre. Several Vandas belonging to the tei-es section may easily 

 be propagated by cuttings inserted in sphagnum. Different 

 composts may also be prepared, but they must all be lighter than 

 the soil in which the established plants grow. Peat, leaf-mould, 

 fibrous loam, and sand, when well sifted and mixed in different 

 proportions, according to the nature of the plants, form a useful 

 material, which can be used for the majority of hard-wooded 

 cuttings. Cuttings are sometimes inserted directly into the earth, 

 but in this case a kind of bed must have been previously 

 prepared after having been turned over and mixed with some 

 peat, leaf-mould, or sand to make it lighter. A certain class of 

 plants seem to strike and thrive more favourably if they are 

 propagated or inserted in ivater. Cyperus is a characteristic 

 example, and the well-kno\vn Oleander i^Nerium Oleander) is 

 another. 



Insertion of Cuttings. — The insertion, or planting, of the 

 cuttings can be executed in various ways. Tropical and sub- 

 tropical soft-wooded cuttings may be inserted in beds of the 

 above-mentioned composition in the frames of the propagating- 

 house. It is advisable, when possible, to plant all the batch of 

 cuttings in the same bed, because a more uniform treatment 

 can thus be applied. Small and rare cuttings should be inserted 

 in pots, pans, and boxes, and placed according to the nature of 

 the plants in the propagating- frames or elsewhere. In nurseries 

 where bedding-plants are largely propagated for early spring 

 planting, shallow boxes are often used. A cutting-bed can be 

 arranged without the help of a house. In this case the reader is 

 referred to the first section on sowing in this chapter, and is 

 advised to make use of the hot-beds under lights there described. 

 It should not be forgotten that cleanliness pays, and that good 

 drainage is one of the chief points on which success depends. 



In inserting a cutting it is preferable to make a hole with a 

 kind of pointed stick, kno\vn as a " dibber (corresponding with 

 the size of the cutting), and to place the cutting into it, the soil 

 being pressed lightly down to prevent it from moving. If cuttings 

 are inserted in pans, pots, or boxes, they will succeed all the 

 better if planted all round the edges of the receptacles. If soil 



