PROPAGATION WITHOUT SEEDS 



bring the number to double this — but they are all 

 modifications of, or developments of, the one idea, which 

 is to cover a node in a stem with earth. Roots tend 

 eternally away from the light and towards moisture, 

 hence they must have earth in which to bury themselves, 

 where the one is excluded and the other conserved. 

 A very little pile of earth over a stem is enough, however, 

 to encourage them to make a start, and their activity 

 usually commences at once. 



To layer a vine or somewhat prostrate growing 

 shrub, lay a branch or cane of the previous season's 

 growth — unless otherwise specified — down along a 

 shallow trench, and cover it at intervals of four or five 

 inches, leaving a node or two between each covered 

 space so that shoots may rise as well as roots 

 descend. When these shoots have made a good start, 

 fill in the uncovered spaces up to, and around, them, 

 until they have the appearance of a row of separate 

 little plants growing from the ground. Do not sever 

 them from the parent plant however, until late in the 

 fall or in the following spring. The time of course 

 depends on when the branch was laid down, and also 

 upon the plant's ability to root quickly. Some things 

 must be left undisturbed much longer than others. 



Serpentine layering is advocated by many, as it 

 is supposed to induce a more even flow of sap and there- 

 fore a correspondingly even distribution of roots along 

 the layered stem. It is the same as the simple layering 

 just described, except that the stem is arched above 

 the ground, at the uncovered spaces, while the portions 



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