46 



GARDENING FOR PLEASURE. 



such as desire more extended information on the subject 

 of propagating plants by cuttings, I would refer to my 

 work, "Practical Floriculture." 



Although florists now rarely resort to propagation by 

 layering, yet now and then it may be desirable for ama- 

 teurs to increase the number of some fayorite plant dur- 

 ing the summer season, where no other method of propa- 

 gation can be practised. The only difference between a 

 layer and a cutting is, that the cutting is entirely de- 

 tached from the parent plant, while the layer remains 

 partially connected with it. Although layering may 

 be done with the ripened wood of yines or shrubs of the 



length from or near the 

 Fig. 15. — propagating BY latering. base of the plant. Take 



the shoot then in the 

 left hand, (after haying stripped it of its leayes for a few 

 inches on each side of where it is to be cut), keep the 

 fingers under the shoot, and make a cut on the upper part, 



CHAPTEK XIV. 



PROPAGATING BY LAYERING. 



growth of the preyious 

 season, yet it is prefer- 

 able to use the shoot of 

 the present year in its 

 half green state ; for ex- 

 ample, a rose or flower- 

 ing shrub is pruned in 

 the usual way in spring; 

 by midsummer it will 

 haye made strong shoots 

 one, two, or three feet in 



