41 6 JOURNAL OF THE ROYAL HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY. 



by an amateur gardening friend, who herself has the privilege of Canon 

 Ellacombe's acquaintance ; she had seen, and described to me roughly, 

 his method of striking cuttings, which is referred to in Prof. Balfour's 

 article as the ' French ' method. Almost all cuttings can be rooted 

 in a fortnight by this method, I gather ; but can you tell me, must 

 the 1 full sunshine,' in which the propagating frame has to be placed, 

 endure for a fortnight ? If so, when could one ever dare to begin ? 

 Am I right in deducing from the article that by this method one may 

 increase one's stock of plants at almost any time of the year ? For 

 amateur gardeners with no ' glass ' and small purses, and who too are 

 often absent from home at critical seasons of the year, this prospect 

 is a delightful one. . . . May I add yet another question ? When 

 the ' full sunshine ' fails should the watering every half -hour be 

 continued ? " 



Professor Balfour replies : " The expression ' full sunshine ' 

 indicates an exposure in the double sense of (i) the position of the 

 frames so as to secure the maximum of direct sunlight, and (2) the 

 absence of all shade. There is, unfortunately, never a period of 

 continuous full sunshine for a fortnight in this country. 



" Cuttings can be struck by the method at any time of the year 

 if the plant is suitable and the right part of the plant is taken. The 

 striking will be slower or more rapid according to the circumstances. 



"If the day is cloudy throughout, one watering will be ample. 

 If the glimpses of sunshine are transient, two or three waterings will 

 be sufficient. 



" It may be helpful to add : (1) the medium for striking should 

 be sand ; (2) the cutting must be put in no deeper than is enough 

 to keep it erect, and (3) there must be no preparatory dibbling ; the 

 cutting must be pushed into the sand and watered at once. The 

 water must settle the sand round the cutting. 



" The water used should be as near the temperature of the 

 sand as possible, at least it should not be so cold as to chill. A 

 thermometer should therefore be placed in the sand." 



Renovation of an Old Tree. 



It not infrequently happens that one desires to save a tree that 

 seems doomed to death but which has interesting associations with 

 the past that no new and vigorous seedling can possibly have. The 

 method illustrated in fig. 140 is one that may be used in some cases. 

 The tree is a medlar, known as the ' George Herbert Medlar.' It 

 was planted by George Herbert in 1632 in the Rectory garden at 

 Bemerton, near Salisbury, and had almost reached the end of its 

 long life when it occurred to Mr. Thos. Sharp, County Instructor in 

 Horticulture in Wilts, to inarch it. A whitethorn was planted in 

 1907 and a branch (fortunately near the ground) was inarched upon 

 it in the spring of 1908. The union was successful, and new vigour 

 has been imparted to the tree. In 1913 an attempt was made to 



